Dragons and Souls, Book 2: Shadows Over Vacuo
by Infernokota
Summary: In the wake of Beacon's Fall, the academy's huntsmen have been scattered across Remnant. Six months later, what remains of Teams DRGN and SOUL travel west to Vacuo in an attempt to protect it from the same tragedy that befell their school; and instead are confronted with an organization that plots to bring the kingdom to its knees. (Currently: Volume 1, Chapter 10)
1. Volume 1, Chapter 1: Moving Onwards

**Volume 1, Chapter 1: Moving Onwards**

* * *

The man trudged forwards, a steaming mug in his hand, letting out a groan as he rolled his neck around, readjusting the white plaster mask affixed to his head. "Gods I hate Vacuo. Makes you kinda miss Atlas, huh?"

The other man snorted, shaking his head. "If you say so."

The duo rounded the corner- and immediately collided into a solid wall of darkness, bouncing back slightly. They looked to each other, before their gazes slowly began raising upwards-

Into dark, angry eyes.

Two massive, wrapped hands lashed out, palming their heads with ease, another pair of lightning fast movements sending them careening head-first into the walls of the hallway, cringe-worthy crunches echoing out as they both went limp, collapsing down to the floor.

There was a blur as something dove from deeper within the dark hallway, a fingerless-gloved hand lashing out to catch the mug before it could crash against the floor.

Irritated green eyes peered up into detached black from above gold-rimmed aviator sunglasses, no words passing between them for a moment. Slowly, the woman began to edge her way forwards to peer around the corner, a hand raising up to readjust her hat. She was dressed in warm, brown leathers, the white sleeves of her dress shirt rolled up. Setting the mug down, she put a finger to her ear.

"Kopere, what've ya got for me, hon?"

* * *

The leaves of the tree shifted, the barest hints of a razor-sharp arrowhead pointing from the dark depths of the boughs, the bow raising as its wielder stared down the sight on its edge with an appraising, dark gaze, the woman within dressed in form-fitting, equally dark blues, highlighted in gold. "…Eight in the courtyard, four patrolling, four in the other building… I think there's still… maybe two more in there with you."

"_Got any shots you can take_?"

"…No. I think it's too risky. They're all in pairs."

"_Clever shits_."

"…Merc?"

"_Way ahead of ya_."

* * *

"I just want to kill some wolves, that too much to ask for?" The man muttered. "That too much to ask for?"

The woman sitting across from him shook her head, arms crossed over her chest, leaning against the catwalk's railing. "Give it time. We can't just march out west willy-nilly. They'd track us down before we could even get close to the coast."

"Yeah, well, I'm getting antsy."

She turned her concealed gaze away from him. "You're always antsy. Hey, when do you think-" When she shifted back forwards, her partner was gone. "…Red?"

She stalked forwards, peering around suspiciously, her hand slowly reaching for the gun at her side.

The faunus was completely unaware of the pair of blue eyes peering up at her, hanging beneath the walkway, fingers looped in the catwalk's grate. The man looked down to the unconscious body gripped in his off hand- before letting him plummet to the sunbaked ground below, a thud and a cloud of smoke curling up around him. The woman shot to attention, peering over the edge to the limp body of her partner.

"_R_-!" She began in shock.

Before she could save anything else, an arm wrapped around her throat, bare and sun-tanned, the barest glimpse of a silver lion's head popping into her view, eyes widening behind her mask as she struggled against the well-muscled limb cutting the blood flow off.

"_Go to sleep, go to sleep, go to sleep_," The man whispered repeatedly, slowly bringing her down to the ground. As she went limp, he released her, rising back to his feet- and lashed out with a brutal stomp, taking a deep breath, ruffling short cut, blonde hair, dressed in a sleeveless red and gold long-coat"Two left on patrol. Anyone got eyes on them?"

"…_No, they're on the opposite side_."

"You're up, Alpha."

* * *

A warm brown gaze met purple, the former giving a small nod. "Keep an eye on the perimeter?"

There was a moment of hesitation before her partner returned the gesture. "…Stay safe."

She reached up, throwing dark, under-cut hair into a bun, taking a step back with a deep breath, before dashing forwards, dark skirt flowing behind her, open-toed boots crashing against the side of the wall, pushing upwards- one step, two- before leaping off again, her hand lashing onto the edge of the catwalk, gripping tightly, a red-and-black tattoo stretching across her upper arm, partly hidden beneath a deep red sash wrapped around her bicep. She gave her companion one last look before raising herself upwards, disappearing from view.

He watched her go, teeth gritting together, taking a steadying breath, his hand falling to the handle of the blade at his side, the wicked, uneven edge of the shattered steel gleaming in the light, the man dressed in loose, dark robes, his left sleeve left to hang loosely by his side. His tired gaze cast around himself, dark bags hanging under his eyes, taking in his surroundings, slowly backing up to disappear into the shade cast by the high wall behind him.

* * *

The woman crept forwards quickly, and quietly, a quiet, magnetic whir sounding as a pair of ringblades shot from their perches at her hips into her hands. "Come on, where the hell are you two." She whispered, scanning around, frustrated.

"Anyways, that's when I say to him, you're not the boss of me!"

"Yeah, and how'd he take that?"

"Oh, he threw a fit, but I was long gone by then!"

The pair of unfamiliar voices burst out into laughter, the woman freezing as the two figures rounded the corner. The duo stopped in their tracks, staring at her, gazes hidden behind their masks.

"…Do we know her?" One asked, slowly leaning backwards.

"…No, I don't… _wait_… oh _shit_! Dragon! Dragon's here! _Dragon's_-"

The woman lashed out with her ringblades, two slashes of green energy arcing towards the duo- one taking a faunus off of his feet, sending him hurtling over the catwalk, falling to the ground below, the other sending his companion flying backwards.

"Heads up!" She called; hand raised to her ear. "It's about to get loud!" She dashed forwards as the other man crawled to his feet, groaning, gaze rising to the woman as she leapt into the air, a pair of boots crashing into his face, sending him hurtling backwards. She took off running without a second thought, heading deeper into the building complex. "Dragon... _stupid friggin' nickname_..."

* * *

The soldiers in the courtyard took off running, weapons raised, an alarm ringing out through the complex.

"100k to the one who can bring me a scalp!" One barked, leading the charge, gun raising-

Before he skid to a stop as a red blur fell from above him, colliding hard with the sandy ground below. The soldiers stared at the man rising in front of them, hard blue gaze turning on them. Slowly, his hand reached up, grasping onto the handle sticking out from behind him-

And drew a massive greatsword, the blade lengthening to stand nearly as tall as himself, the scuffed, steel blade burying into the ground. He gave them a coy look, free hand raised.

"Now, now, boys and girls; what's the rush?"

"_You_ must be one of those Dragon _bastards_." One of the faunus spat.

The swordsman rolled his eyes. "Firstly, one of the _Soul_ bastards, secondly, both Dragons are chicks, so it'd probably be _bi_-"

There was a rush of movement, the sound of stone and plaster shattering echoing out over the courtyard as the nearby wall exploded outwards, a limp body flying free from the dark depths to clatter into the two soldiers at the front of the pack.

The blonde warrior watched them go, an eyebrow raised. "…Sorry, I didn't catch that last part."

"Alright," A woman called as she stepped through the hole, two massive revolvers raised. "I'll give y'all one chance to lay down your arms in exchange for preferential, bordering on gentle, possibly even lover-like treatment."

The soldiers looked to each other unsurely, their weapons still raised. Their gazes swiftly shot back to the hole in the wall as heavy footsteps began to sound out, a hulking individual appearing in the gap, dark gaze rising to the faunus, a limp body dragging behind him, the man dressed in dark leathers, bared arms hulkingly huge, one arm covered in ornate, dark tattoos, hands wrapped in dark tape. He let out a growl as he hurled the unmoving faunus out into the open.

"Eh... I_... open fire_!" One of the soldiers called, voice thick with terror.

"_That's_ more like it." The swordsman said with a grin.

The courtyard exploded into movement, the faunus raising guns and blades, charging forwards, bullets flying freely. The blonde twirled behind the safety of his blade, the gunshots bouncing off harmlessly against the steel, the gunslinger charging forwards, falling into a slide, her own shots sent back towards the group, sending them scattering apart.

"Ah-_yup_!" She called.

The greatswordsman lashed out to grasp the handle of his blade, pulling down with an upheaval of dirt, the sword ripping itself free from the ground, the gunslinger leaping up to plant both boots onto its surface, vaulting high into the air, twirling, bullets blossoming out from her, heavy shots battering against her opponents, sending them scrambling for cover as she fell, landing in a spin, replacing her revolvers' canisters with ridiculous speed, a grin claiming her face as gold energy began to flow over her.

She shot back to attention as a faunus roared, charging towards her, battleaxe raised high- and then promptly disappeared in a blur of black iron, a wicked, massive flail replacing him, its chain grinding as it flew back towards its owner, the hulking huntsman letting out a roar as he tore forwards, black smoke beginning to curl up from him, the flail soaring around the combatants' heads, skillfully crashing into any of the soldiers in its path, crumpling the faunus with each impact, taking them off of their feet, hurling them away.

A soldier rushed towards him, wild spray of bullets colliding against his side, black aura glimmering against the giant's body, before the much smaller man lashed out with the butt of his gun, crashing against his opponent's jaw.

The huntsman barely flinched, turning rapidly blackening eyes to the soldier, a snarl claiming his face. He lashed out, palming his opponent's head, throwing him back the way he'd come as if he weighed nothing.

Before the faunus could impact with the ground, the massive greatsword collided with his midsection, the blade compacting and shifting as a blue light glowed against the man's chest.

The blonde huntsman grinned, pulling a trigger. A colossal blue shot impacted against the soldier's chest, sending him flying back into the fray limply, the swordsman following after him, twirling his blade above his head with a cackle.

The gunslinger let loose a sharp whistle, pointing off to the side. "We've got reinforcements comin'!"

Sure enough, the last of the soldiers began to spill from the building opposite of them, weapons raised, barking orders- unaware of the dark clad figure perched above them.

The woman dropped quickly, legs wrapping around the last of the faunus, pirouetting both combatants in place, sending him slamming back into the dirt, the short huntress popping back to her feet, lashing out with a vicious kick, twirling masterfully around the strikes sent her way.

One of the soldiers, removed from the woman and her melee, scowled, raising his gun towards her- stopping as something flew through the air to bury next to him, a thick cord following in its wake. He blinked owlishly, turning to it, gaze following its path upwards.

A boot collided hard with his face, sending him flipping head over heels as the archer impacted with the ground, rolling back towards the brawl unfolding before her, another arrow cutting through the air to send one of the shorter woman's enemies flying back into the darkness of the building they'd come from.

"Took you long enough." The former huntress muttered, ringblades coming up to parry a vicious blow away.

"Sorry!" The archer called, dashing towards her, firing arrows liberally as she went. The shorter warrior dropped low, spinning, taking out one of the soldier's legs out from under them.

The other huntress leapt high over her partner, cartwheeling, an arrow crashing into the airborne faunus, sending them back down towards the diminutive warrior below, lashing out with both boots, sending the limp soldier flipping away from them, quickly kipping back up to her feet, both women's gazes turning to rest of the fight rapidly winding to a close.

The gunslinger leapt forwards, two glowing golden shots firing from her revolvers, sending her opponent careening away as she fell into a roll, landing in a crouch. The greatswordsman hurtled over her, spinning in the air, sword lashing out around them, taking another of the soldiers off of their feet, crashing hard into the ground.

One of the soldiers, trembling in fear, slowly began to back away from the melee, whispering to himself feverishly- before impacting with something hard. He slowly looked over his shoulder; into the snarling, furious face of the berserker, eyes pools of black, dark smoke rising from him like that of a bonfire's, shoulders hunched like an animal's.

"_I'm sorry_." The faunus whispered.

The huntsman let out a growl as both hands grasped onto the soldier's uniform, hefting him into the air- before bringing him back down with a crunch, a crack shooting across the dry ground below, the impact making the dirt shake slightly.

The courtyard descended back into quiet, the sound of wind whistling over their heads the only thing breaking the silence.

"…Alright! I think we're good!" The swordsman called, rising to his feet, greatsword balanced against his shoulder.

The gunslinger nodded, shaking out her hands, smoke curling off of her arms. "Nice spinnin' out there, blondie."

The huntresses across the courtyard sent looks around, nodding to each other.

Click.

They froze in their tracks, eyes wide.

Boom.

Poof.

The huntresses and the bullet arcing towards them disappeared into a thick cloud of smoke, shrouding a large section of the courtyard in darkness, the other trio shooting to attention.

The soldier stumbled out from the building, wincing, gun still raised, staring out into the cloud in confusion.

The diminutive huntress let out a yell of anger as she dove from the smoke, both knees crashing into him, bringing him back down to the ground, the warrior not wasting any time popping back to her feet, scowling as she leapt into the air, both boots colliding down into his head with a brutal double stomp.

She stared down at him for a moment, huffing, the tension and adrenaline slowly draining from her as he lay limply. Finally, she turned to march back out into the courtyard, her ringblades returning to her sides.

The greatswordsman looked to her with a cocked eyebrow, raising an inquisitive thumb into the air. She gave him a nod, returning the gesture.

"Alright, beautiful day, boys and girls, beautiful day!"

The brooding huntsman, though, prowled past him, still huffing ferally, snarl affixed to his face, hands curled into claws as he paced back and forth, dark gaze shooting around them. The blonde side stepped into the much larger man's way, weaving to remain in front of him, blue staring into black.

He let loose a whistle, raising a hand to snap at his partner. "Hey, hey, look at me, dude! I'm down here, look at me. We're good, we're done, they're all dead. Breathe, big man, _breathe_."

The giant's gaze finally settled on the swordsman's, his shaky movements slowly steadying, breaths coming more and more stable, his pupils beginning to retract. Recognition and cognizance began to fill his expression, getting the blonde to nod.

"Atta boy. We're all good. Just friends here."

The hulking huntsman grunted, storming past his teammate to march solemnly towards the gates, the swordsman and gunslinger watching him go, before sharing a concerned gaze.

"Everyone else is doin' a last sweep." The woman said as they began to march towards the entrance.

"Roll call?"

She nodded, lifting a hand to her ear. "Roll call, everyone, we're headin' out! Oracle, Lance, Ulysses are all alright, waitin' by the gate."

Lance snorted. "If you call him alright."

Oracle elbowed him pointedly.

"_Daria and Gail a-ok. We're just checking out the western building. Looks like they burned any important stuff in here and smashed the computers_." Daria called back.

"…_Shinai on the other side. I'll be at the gate in a minute_."

The gunslinger grinned as she and Lance joined Ulysses outside the complex, reaching up to the entrance to rip the White Fang banner down from its exterior. "Just another day in paradise, huh, blondie?"

"Just another day in paradise." He shot back, watching as Ulysses pulled a jug of water from his bike, taking a swig.

* * *

The man bowed lowly; face filled with gratification. "Thank you all! We couldn't have afforded to continue paying for their heinous 'protection'."

Daria looked to the rest of her team, rubbing the back of her neck sheepishly. "Ah… it was the least we could do, really.

"Ah, but you have done Shadaq a great service- please, we've collected a reward for you-"

"-No, _no_ we're not taking your money. Really, we would have gone after them even if they hadn't been extorting you. It was our pleasure."

The man shook his head, looking to the other smiling citizens around him, extending a stack of lien towards her. "We insist. Think of it as our way of thanking you for doing us a justice that we could never truly repay you for."

Daria closed his hands back around the bills, giving him a serious look. "Keep your money- and use it to hire some friggin' huntsmen."

His smile brightened. "And we have. This is your payment."

The duo stared off for a moment- before she sighed, taking the tithe from him. "…Thank you."

"No, thank _you_, ma'am," He looked to the other warriors. "Thank you all. Shadaq's your home for as long as you need it."

Oracle gave him a smile. "'Preciate the offer, but we've gotta keep movin'."

"Of course," The man bowed to Daria again. "Thank you for your services, huntsmen and huntresses. _Ila-liqaa'_."

A blush spread across the woman's cheeks. "Uh… and… _ma…'a as…salaama_ to you as well."

He nodded and stepped past her, the crowd around the huntsmen beginning to disperse. Gail stepped up to Daria, giving her a small smile. "You almost sounded confident that time!"

The shorter huntress rolled her eyes. "It sucks when you say it, because I know that you're actually being sincere, and that somehow makes it worse. O?"

Oracle reached into her bag, pulling out a large map. "…We've got a ways till the next town. We should probably stock up on water and snacks before we head on out."

Daria's gaze went unfocused, staring off into the distance, face slowly falling. After a moment, her teammate placed a hand on her shoulder, the two huntresses sharing small smiles. The former leader of DRGN cleared her throat, giving her teammates a nod. "Alright. Try and stay in budget this time, guys. I'd like to make that money last until we get to the Capital."

Lance rolled his eyes as he turned to march towards the market, saluting casually as he went.

She watched him go for a moment, her gaze slowly tilting towards Shinai standing off to the side, arms crossed, leaning against the wall. She took a deep breath, before beginning to march over to him, his purple eyes flitting to her for a split second. She smiled as she took up a spot next to him. "…Hey. Thanks for the save back there."

"…Of course."

"I mean it. That was lightning fast. How… did it feel?"

He gave her a tiny smile. "…No different than usual."

"But no worse?"

"No worse."

"Well, that's… good, at least," The two former leaders stood silently for a moment, her gaze tilting back up to him. "…You need a haircut, Shin. You're getting shaggy," He gave a short snort at that. "…Alright. Go get some water for the road, it's only gonna get hotter from here… and again… thanks. I mean it."

His miniscule smile returned, strained as it was. "…Of course. It was the least I could do."

She returned the small grin, hand resting on his arm for a moment before she turned to march after the rest of her team.

The samurai watched her go for a moment, a breath escaping him, shoulders slumping, eyes casting themselves to the sand and dirt below. Slowly, his gaze shifted to his hip, staring at the remains of Shi En hanging at his side. His teeth grit together, hands clenching into fists.

'_You're lucky, samurai. You're lucky. I'll be back for you.'_

* * *

The hall was cast in a warm, undulating purple glow, the towering, cathedral-esque windows lining the walls letting in the dark, unnatural red light of scarlet, shattered moon hanging high above the night sky.

"_Gods_…"

All eyes in the room idly turned towards the two figures standing at the window, staring out at the barren, red-rock wasteland beyond, pools of black, inky sludge dotting its landscape.

The duo watched as the bubbling pits rocked and stretched, creatures dragging themselves free from the murky depths; letting out howls and roars as they began to roam out into the hellscape beyond, disappearing in ever growing hoards.

"I wouldn't use that kinda language around here."

The young duo turned, dual pairs of red and black eyes meeting glimmering, amused golden.

Vegas Gold pushed away from the massive table he was sat at, kicking boots up onto its surface as he flashed Emerald Sustrai and Mercury Black a tilted grin. "You never _quite_ get used to it, huh?"

A loud snap echoed out through the chamber, drawing the trio's eyes to the side- to Cinder Fall, what was visible of her face deadly serious, most of the left side of her visage covered in a mask, her left sleeve left hanging limply beside her. Vegas leaned towards her, one eyebrow raised, as she struggled to form audible words, whispering huskily in his ear.

Vegas turned back to the younger criminals. "…This isn't the place to gawk. Stop peering."

The duo shared gazes before beginning to walk over to him and Cinder, standing behind the latter- Emerald shouldering Mercury out of the way to stand directly behind their mistress.

"Boots off of the table, Gold."

The killer's gaze lazily turned back forwards, darkening in irritation. He stared across the table at the older man before him, Scroll raised, dark gaze not once rising to the others at the table; he was tall, and lanky, greying hair short cut and combed to the side, a thick mustache cladding his face, dressed in an immaculate, dark suit.

"Or?" Vegas whispered warningly, eyes narrowing.

"Oh, I'm _far_ from the one you should be afraid of." He shot back.

The killer stared at him for a long, tense moment- until Cinder gave him a hard side-eye. He snarled as he leaned back, bringing his feet off of the crystal table.

The older man's eyes rose to him for a split moment, a smug smile peeking out from under his mustache. "Yes, yes, keep your posse in check," Mercury snarled, taking a step towards the man, stopping only as Emerald lashed out to grasp onto his arm. "…You hear that? _Silence_."

There was a discontented grumbling as the man sat beside him gave him a withering side-eye- he was much larger than the others in the room, dressed in a dark green long-coat, dark hair ruffled around his head, a thick beard stretching across his jawline.

The mustached man, though, was not fazed. "I've half a mind to _thank_ the little girl that bested you."

"If I were you, I'd hunt her down. Find her and, well… she took _your_ eye, didn't she?"

The snarl returned to Vegas' face as he turned to his side, staring down the man sat beside him, a sick grin planted on his face; he was lanky as well, features gaunt, dark hair pulled into a long braid behind him, golden eyes shifting from Cinder to the killer beside him, his form dressed in a long, dark coat, bared chest littered with scars.

"One more _word_ out of you, freak," Vegas hissed, matching the man's twisted smile. "And I'll have you nailed to the door, _flayed_."

The man let loose a round of giggles. "Please, do, my dear Gold!… I haven't had a good challenge in oh-so _long_."

"Hmph," The man across from them continued. "_Very_ strong words, Mr. Gold, coming from the man who failed to kill your precious samurai not once, nor twice, but on _three_ separate occasions."

Vegas shot to his feet, all pretenses of civility lost, snarling ferally across at the man, pupils dilating into manic pinpricks. "_If you mention _him _one more time_-"

"-You'll, _what_, exactly?"

The golden killer moved to continue, the man beside him giggling in amusement at the situation before him. Cinder, though, grasped a hand onto Vegas' arm, the limb beginning to glow with heat, the killer ripping his captured arm free from her grasp. The duo stared off for a moment, the woman moving to speak, only for breathy gasps to escape her.

"Hmph. Pathetic," The mustached man continued. "Why did you even-"

The sound of a metal latching coming undone echoed out through the room, before the massive doors at the far end of the hall yawned open.

All five of the individuals sitting rose to their feet in near unison, heads bowing as a figure entered the room.

Salem swept inside, long, pitch black dress dragging along the floor behind her, giving her the image of gliding towards the great table, the pale Queen sweeping past the quintet serenely, coming to a stop at the head of it, turned away from them.

"Watts," She said evenly. The mustached man jolted, turning to her. She swept back around to face the others. "Do you find such malignance necessary?" She raised a hand, gesturing for the quintet to reclaim their seats.

"I apologize, ma'am," Watts said. "I'm not particularly _fond_ of failure."

Salem took her own seat, staring across at him. "Then I see no reason for your cruelty towards Vegas and Cinder. Vegas' role was as a scout first, and a combatant second, both duties which he performed to perfection. And young Cinder has become our Fall Maiden, destroyed Beacon Tower and, most importantly, killed dear Ozpin. So, I'm curious… what failures are you referring to?"

Watts cast his gaze around to the two across from him, Vegas flashing him a snarling smile. "Well, the girl with the silver eyes, your Grace."

The hulking man beside him hummed. "Yes. We've dealt with them before. How is it a novice was able to best one of us?"

"Yes, my thoughts exactly. Even without her new power, it should have been effortless."

Salem's eyes hardened onto them. "It is because _of_ the Maiden's power. Make no mistake, Cinder, you hold the key to our victory. But your newfound strength brings with it a crippling weakness; which is why you will remain by my side as we continue your training,"

Cinder's face fell, gaze lowering to the table- Vegas, though, slowly narrowed his eyes, looking from her back to Salem at the head.

"Dr. Watts," The Queen continued. "You are to take Cinder's place and meet with our informant in Mistral."

"Very good." The man said with a nod.

"Tyrian, I want you to continue your hunt for the Spring Maiden."

The man beside Vegas let loose another round of laughter. "_Gladly_."

"Hazel, I'm sending you to the leader of the White Fang. Adam Taurus has arranged the meeting. The boy continues to prove loyal. Ensure that Sienna Khan feels the same."

"As you wish." The hulking man muttered.

Cinder raised a finger, Emerald quickly leaning in towards her as her mistress rasped something out. "She wants to know…" The woman hesitated unsurely. "What about the girl?"

Watts let out a scoff. "What _about_ her? Seems to me that this is _Cinder's_ problem, not ours."

The Maiden slammed her hand into the tabletop, Vegas' grip tightening around Dragon's Fang at his side.

"That's enough," Salem said evenly. "Tyrian?"

"Yes, my lady?"

"Spring can wait. Find the girl that did this to Cinder," The man let out a burst of elated giggles, clapping. "And bring her to me."

Tyrian froze, face falling as a groan escaped him, lips turning up into a pout. After a moment, his grin returned, giving Salem a shrug.

"And Vegas," She continued, the killer snapping to attention, golden eyes turning towards her suspiciously. "You will be heading to Vacuo."

He stared silently in shock for a moment. "…_What_?" He whispered, disbelievingly.

The Queen's hands folded in front of her. "The moment Haven Academy falls, I want to continue onwards to Shade; our grace period between each Academy and relic will only continue to shorten- we will not be afforded the time we took for Beacon and Haven. Meet with our informants, locate the Maiden and the Relic, and ensure that we are firmly prepared to assault Shade after we've attained the Lamp."

Vegas looked back and forth between her and Cinder, panic beginning to settle into his gaze. "I- I can't _leave_-"

"-Yes, you can," Salem cut back in firmly. "You and Cinder are not attached at the hip. You will survive without her. You will finish our preparations in Vacuo, and that is final. Am I understood?"

The killer looked back to Cinder, her eye locked onto his filled with steely warning. His expression twisted from shock to indignation, flashes of barely controlled snarls appearing on his visage, his hands clenching into tight fists, blood beginning to pool in his palms from his white-knuckled grip, his jaw and arms trembling.

Finally, he shot to his feet, the legs of his chair scraping across the floor, wordlessly turning to storm away, marching furiously towards the doors beyond, breaths coming short and frantic.

He almost reached the threshold-

"I did not say you were excused." Salem said coldly, the serenity in her voice gone.

Vegas froze, eyes widening in horrified realization. His teeth grit together, slowly forcing himself to turn back towards the grand table, the others' gazes locked onto him in interest. He swallowed his swelling fear, head dipped low. "…May I be _excused_." He grit out.

Red and black eyes bore into his own for a long, tense moment. Finally, Salem raised a hand, waving him off.

He gave a quick, stiff bow, quickly turning to beat a haphazard retreat.

"Because of your efforts, Beacon has fallen. And Haven will be next." Salem continued, herself and the others rising to their feet.

The doors slammed shut behind him, echoing out through the Keep with finality.


	2. Chapter 2: Convalescence

**Chapter 2: Convalescence**

* * *

The sound of knuckles rapping against the door filled the otherwise silent room, rousing a pair of crystal blue eyes to shift tiredly. A sliver of light shone in to illuminate the messy bed, the crack widening with a creak; an older woman's face appeared in the gap, similarly blue eyes dark with concern, blonde hair pulled into a haphazard bun.

"There's some lunch downstairs ready; I picked up a couple of burgers.." She said quietly, voice carefully light.

The boy pulled himself up into a sitting position, giving her a tiny smile. "…Thanks."

She returned the smile, beginning to pull away. "…There's also still some waffles from this morning if you want some."

"…Thanks, mama."

She lingered, pain beginning to fill her expression. "Love you, baby."

He simply stared at her with a strained smile for a long moment; finally, she gave a tiny nod, softly closing the door as she went, tears welling in her eyes.

Nash stared at the closed door silently, smile slowly dropping; his dark, exhausted gaze turning down to his lap, the energy flooding from him, locks of long, shaggy hair falling to cover one side of his face. He swallowed hard, arms beginning to tremble as he slowly, anxiously began to pull his hands from the depths of his oversized hoodie's pockets.

He raised the offending limb before him, breath hitching, staring at the remnants of his hand; one halved, only his middle, pointer, and thumb remaining; and his other hand, removed entirely at the wrist.

As quickly as he had pulled his arms free from his pocket, he quickly replaced them, his breaths coming more and more rapid, eyes wrenching shut tightly. After a moment, his pained expression slowly faded, his panic ebbing as quickly as it began. Finally, he swallowed hard, letting out a long, shaky breath.

His gaze shifted over the messy state of his room for a moment. A heavy sigh escaped him, climbing from his bed, stepping into a pair of sliders before making his way towards the door, pulling his hood up over his head as he did. Hesitantly, he reached out for the handle, taking it in his fingers, staring at the contact as he slowly twisted, pulling it open. His other arm raised to shield his gaze from the sudden wave of light washing over him, wincing as he stepped out into the hall.

He took several deep breaths as he reached the threshold of the kitchen, the sound of his mother humming from within echoing out to him. One foot in front of the other, he stepped through, making his way towards the small table that dominated the room.

Helen Aspis looked up with a jolt as her son entered the room, nearly dropping her steaming mug in surprise. A smile crossed her face, reaching over to push a chair out for him. "Good afternoon, baby," He gave her a small smile of his own as he sat down, looking around at the warmly lit room around them. She rose to her feet, walking the short distance to the counter. "Do you want your burger? I got some fries-"

"Waffles," He cut in quietly. "…Please."

She turned to him, smile softening. "…Of course." She turned to walk towards the fridge, leaving the boy sitting quietly as she began to prepare a plate for him.

Nash's gaze fell to the wooden tabletop below, eyes unfocusing, face falling, his mind wandering away. His hand came up to tap anxiously against the tabletop, quickening in speed. Pressure began to pour down onto the boy, his mouthing going dry, slowly overtaking him-

A plate set down in front of him, snapping him from his reverie, wide eyes blinking in shock, staring at the waffle before him, a fork and knife beside it.

Helen smiled as she sat down, sipping at her mug. "With chocolate chips- your favorite."

He returned the gesture, one hand uncertainly rising to grasp onto the fork, the other arm similarly reaching for the knife- before stopping, slowly falling back to his side. His mother's eyes widened in realization. "I'm so sorr-"

Nash shook his head. "…It's fine." The boy hesitated as he stared down at his food, fork rising and falling uncertainly, before setting it down on its edge, wiggling it back and forth, working in vain to carve a small piece away.

She watched him for a moment, rising to her feet. "Here, let me-"

"_No_!" He snapped, eyes darkening; his mother recoiled in shock. Slowly, his face fell, swallowing hard. "I… I got it."

Helen nodded, retaking her seat, staring down at her mug, gripping it in her hand tightly. Nash similarly cast his gaze to his food, chewing absentmindedly on his meal, working in difficulty to carve his lunch up.

His mother cleared her throat, a thin smile reclaiming her face. "Kyana came by this morning; she was asking to see you."

His face fell, taking a steadying breath. "Y…yeah. That'd be nice," They went silent for a moment, his fork coming to rest onto the plate. He rose to his feet. "…Thanks, mama."

Slowly, he turned, shuffling back out of the kitchen, the remains of his meal forgotten as he disappeared back into the hall. He slowed to a stop, leaning against the wall, eyes shifting to the entrance to the kitchen; quiet sniffles and smothered sobs echoing out towards him. He wrenched his eyes shut as he continued his march back to his room, the door closing softly behind him, plunging the boy back into darkness.

He let his sliders fall from his feet as he made his way towards his bed- before stopping. His gaze turned to the portrait on his table, hand reaching out to pick the small silver frame up-

Staring at his and Daria's grinning faces, Gail barely in frame, offering a tiny smile of her own, Rainier further back from the others, arms crossed, shooting the camera a coy, raised eyebrow; the Emerald Forest sprawled behind the quartet, far below Beacon Cliff's edge they were perched on.

Nash sat down on his bed, gaze never turning from the picture, legs curling into himself as he lied down, staring at his old team, tear's welling in his eyes.

Slowly, those eyes closed, the former huntsman slowly falling back into fitful sleep.

* * *

The wave of green energy flew through the air, catching the beowolf out of its roaring leap, cleaving the grimm in two, the limp halves falling to roll against the sand.

Lance looked up at the collision, his gaze meeting Daria's, the duo sharing nods. His eyes narrowed. "Down!"

The Mistrali hit the ground as the swordsman pirouetted hard, Iron Maw sent flying towards her, blade gleaming in the afternoon light; the throw hit its mark, ripping through the wolf lunging towards the huntress before burying into the dirt. He and Daria locked eyes again, both inclining their heads in exasperation as they recovered, the swordsman dashing for his blade.

Shinai stared at his teammates from a few meters removed from the melee, purple eyes shifting between each of the combatants- "Oracle, left flank!"

The gunslinger shot to attention as he called out, falling to a knee as she spun, revolvers firing before she'd even come to a stop, ripping through the charging grimm. The beast collapsed, dead, sliding towards her.

She grinned around the toothpick in her mouth, moving to rise back to her feet- before ceasing, Avenger's chain nearly cracking against her skull as it swung past her. She snarled as her gaze turned to Ulysses-

The berserker was charging forwards towards a similarly hulking beowolf, dressed in white bone-like armor, both combatants roaring as Avenger swung back around the dark-clad warrior, deep in the throes of his semblance. The heavy flail buried itself into the creature's side, its chain snaking back towards its owner, dragging the flailing grimm with it, Ulysses meeting it halfway.

His hands lashed out as the beast came into reach, its claws striking out wildly against his form, each blow ignored as he gripped the grimm's bottom jaw, tearing down, the creature's snout going limp.

Ulysses growled as his attention turned, grasping onto the beowolf's arm- and with one mighty pull, ripped it free from the creature's body, turning on his heel to bury the wicked sharp claws into another one lunging towards him. Both hands raising into the air before striking downwards, smashing the grimm down into the sand with a bone-rattling crunch, both creatures limp and dissipating around them.

The berserker, though, wheeled around, huffing in unrestrained fury, hands formed into claws at his side, Avenger returning to his grip.

Gail scampered forwards, placing her bow down onto the ground, hands raised placatingly towards him, gait slowing. "Hey, hey… come back… come back, Ul…" She said softly, dark eyes pleading.

He took a hard step towards her, before stopping, breath rising and falling slower and slower, recognition filling his eyes. His semblance began to fade, the tension draining from his form. The hulking huntsman raised himself to his full height, running a hand across his mouth with a sniff.

Gail gave him a small smile quietly, reclaiming her bow and slinging it over her shoulder, trudging back towards where Daria had reconvened with the others, looking over the dead, disappearing grimm littering the ground.

Ulysses watched her go for a moment, before following suit, marching over to lean against his bike, arms crossed over his chest.

Oracle nodded. "That's all of them."

"Let's head back to town and get our payment. We'll try and get as far as we can before dark falls. Good?" Daria called out.

A chorus of assent greeted her, the sextet turning to march back the way they'd come, wood, steel, and old sunbaked sand buildings coming into view over the dunes.

* * *

_Whoosh_.

The fire flashed back to life in front of Gail, the flames raising ever higher and higher to the night sky littered with stars. She smiled in satisfaction as she scampered away, finding her way to the loose circle surrounding the fire.

Lance looked over to Daria. "How much lien did we get from that job?"

The leader's gaze rose from her food, blinking. "Just a little under a thousand."

"Well that sucks."

"They're poor, Lance, what do you want from them."

"I- yeah, fine, aight."

The duo stared off for a moment, before Oracle cleared her throat, drawing their attentions away. "Last I checked, we've got about a day's march left till we get to Al-Medjek. We got enough supplies to make it?"

Gail nodded. "As long as we don't… _indulge_, we should."

"...Fair enough. Y'know... Rainier gave me a bit of an idea of what Vacuo was like, and it's been about the exact opposite."

Lance shook his head, taking a bite from his meal. "Naw, that's Western Vacuo; the morals are pretty much the same, but the cultures are different. It's a big kingdom; people develop weirdly."

"How do you know so much about Vacuo?" Daria asked after a moment, leaning back in her seat.

"Merc days. We, uh… we bounced back and forth quite a bit. We weren't always Vale. Hell, by the end, we spent more time out here, I wanna say. Vacuoans are less touchy about that kind of stuff."

The leader of the expedition watched him quietly for a moment, mulling a thought over. "…You guys ever head out west?"

He froze, gaze shifting from her, to Oracle, then back to her uncertainly. "Uh… no. Those, uh… Platinas keep things under tight wraps…"

"Hm."

Gail watched the interaction unfold, Daria's mood quickly dampening, biting her lip. "Ulysses," His gaze shifted towards her without moving. "You did really good today… I really do think you're making progress!"

The hulking huntsman watched her for a moment, face its trademark, guarded steel. "…Thanks." He murmured lowly, dark eyes falling back to the fire.

"Really…" She trailed off, twiddling her fingers. "Um… do you… is Rip and Tear something you have to… consciously do? Or does it just… happen?"

"…It just happens." He muttered, turning back towards her- before freezing.

The hulking man stood behind the archer, dark eyes looking her over, before settling onto the comparably smaller warrior. "…Why don't you _show her_?" He asked lowly, voice filled with malice.

Ulysses' face hardened, teeth gritting as his jaw trembled, a growl bubbling up from his chest, hands gripping into white knuckled grips, breath quickening.

Gail blinked, turning over her shoulder to follow his gaze, staring out at the empty desert behind her, gaze finding its way back to her companion's. "…Ulysses?"

His eyes shifted back and forth between her and the man smiling viciously behind his thick beard- before shooting to his feet, marching away from the campfire, shaking his head as he went, disappearing into the darkness.

The remaining five watched him go, eyes meeting each other's uncertainly. Lance raised an eyebrow. "…Are we gonna talk about him yet, or…"

"He's trying," Oracle shot back. "He just… he's in a worse place than any of us are. He'll get there."

"Almost not worth thinkin' about…" The swordsman muttered, leaning back.

"Listen," Daria added. "He's here. He _is_ trying. That's all I really care about. We've got a mission, and as long as everyone's willing to keep moving forwards, we'll keep moving forwards… there'll be time enough for lots of therapy after we make sure Shade's taken care of. In the meanwhile; we hold on," Her gaze turned subtly to Shinai, sitting quietly a few feet away from the others. "That's all I really care about."

The campsite went quiet for a moment, the remaining quintet sinking away from the conversation. Lance finally broke the silence, rising to his feet. "Sleep tight."

"First light." Oracle called over as he left the circle towards his tent disappearing into its depths, waving her off.

Shinai similarly rose, nodding his head to the others silently before similarly departing. Gail looked between the other two remaining huntresses, picking her bow up as she rose to her feet. "…I'll take second watch, Daria."

The leader gave her a smile. "Goodnight, Gail," The archer returned the expression to both huntresses, stepping away from the firelight. Daria and Oracle looked to each other, the former inclining her head. "Go get some sleep, O. We've got a long day ahead of us."

The gunslinger sighed, looking out towards where Ulysses had disappeared to. "…Seems like all we've got are long days now, huh, sis?"

Daria snorted. "…Yeah. Yeah it does. Sleep tight."

"You too. Don't forget to let Gail take over- no all-nighter, you hear?"

"Yeah, yeah."

Oracle gathered up her guns and ammo belts marching away towards her tent.

The lone huntress stared down at the fire, a deep, resigned sigh escaping her, the strength flooding from her form. She slumped in her spot, leaning down to bury her face into her hands, taking several steadying, deep breaths.

* * *

Ulysses stared out at the stars, sitting against the dune, arms resting against his knees, searching the sky with dark, tired eyes.

"You don't _belong_ here." The familiar deep voice rumbled.

The huntsman's eyes didn't move, though the muscles in his face tightened in irritation. "Go away." He growled.

"You can't get rid of me. I'm part of you, boy. Every time that you use that semblance- that's from me."

Ulysses' face twisted into a snarl, growling as his gaze snapped down.

The huntsman's dark, furious gaze bore into Ludwig Ebony's own dark gaze, the duo staring off angrily. The younger Ebony rose to his feet, bearing down onto him. "You're just a _ghost_," He spat. "I killed you. We're through." Without another word, he turned on his heel, storming back towards the campsite.

"I made you _strong_!" Ludwig called back. "If it wasn't for me, you wouldn't have gotten _half_ as far as you have! You owe me, boy! I'll get my due one way or another."

Ulysses looked over his shoulder to the softly blowing sands behind him, snarling before he crested the top of the dune, marching back to the low light of the campfire, Daria looking up as he approached.

The huntress watched him as he passed her wordlessly, hands clenched into fists. "...Ul," That brought the giant to a stop, looking over his shoulder to his leader. The duo stared off for a moment before she inclined her head. "...Thank you."

"For?" He mumbled.

"Trying."

His gaze shifted from her, eyes clouding with a touch of guilt. He cleared his throat, giving her a nod before disappearing into the depths of his own tent. She stared after him before turning back to the fire, letting out a long-suffering sigh, idly reaching over to throw another branch onto the embers.

* * *

Nash's gaze rose to the night sky, sliders pressing into the dark tile of the rooftop, hands ever stuck into his pockets, staring up at the shattered moon high above. He let out a heavy sigh, blue eyes softening as he leaned back.

"Wonder where you are…" He whispered, unblinking.

His reverie settled for another few moments- before a loud racket drew him back to life, turning towards the edge of the roof as quiet cursing filled the otherwise silent night air. Two hands latched onto the tiles and, with much effort, their owner scrambled up, coming to a rest on her hands and knees, face coated in sweat, letting out a tired breath. She was young, as young as Nash himself; skin light olive in tone, long, dark hair falling in a braid down her back, amber eyes locked onto the rooftop.

"Hey, Kyana." Nash said quietly.

The girl turned to him with a broad, gap-toothed smile. "Hey, Nash," She said as she began to make her way towards him, coming to a stop beside the former huntsman, sitting unsteadily. "Whatcha doin' up?"

"…Oh… couldn't sleep."

She nodded. "…How're the wings?"

He looked to her, then to his pocket, sighing. "…Still broken."

"Yeah… that'll happen. How've you been?"

"…A lot of the same."

"Yeah… that'll happen."

He turned to her. "What're _you_ doing up?"

"Came to see you,"

The duo sat quietly for a moment, Nash's gaze beginning to water, swallowing hard. Finally, he looked away, taking a steadying breath.

She nudged him with her elbow. "I know it doesn't feel like it… but people _do_ care about you… you're not a burden, Nashton."

"_Nashton_." He said with a quiet groan, shaking his head.

"Oh, yeah, it's coming back."

"Please… please don't."

"Uh huh, it's happening."

"I'll call you Ky-Ky."

"You will _not_!"

"Quid pro quo."

"Quid pro _wha_?"

"I'll tell you…" He trailed off, his budding smile slowly fading eyes trailing downwards again.

"…Nash?" She asked, leaning around him, her own expression twisting in concern.

"…Sorry," He said, shaking his head. "I's… nothin'. Don't worry about it."

"You sure?"

"…Yeah. Just… memories."

The teens fell back into silence, looking up to the sky. She leaned her head towards him, not drawing her gaze away. "…What were they like?"

The former huntsman was quiet for a few moments. "…They were… it… you ever… it was like having another family… sometimes we argued, sometimes it felt like we were inseparable… dunno…"

"…So it feels like you lost your family."

"…Yeah… yeah… sometimes it does."

"…Whattaya think they're up to?"

He swallowed hard, taking his time before answering. "…I kept waiting for them to come, y'know that? Like any day, they'd stop by and we'd go back to Beacon and be a team again… like they'd just… bring my hands back, take back everything that happened… like it was all a bad dream and they'd wake me up…" His head fell. "…Doesn't seem like they ever did,"

She stared silently at him, waiting for him to continue. "…I dunno what they're doin'… I dunno where they are. Daria might've gone back to Mistral… Gail to Moa- _Mo'alau_… Rain to Vacuo… maybe… maybe they got a new member and just forgot about me… maybe they're dead…"

"…What makes you feel the best?"

"…I like to think they're somewhere, just… waitin' for me to come back."

"Will you?"

He turned to her, eyebrows furrowing in confusion. "Will I what?"

Their gazes met, hers earnest. "Go back."

"I- I _can't_…" He looked down to his hands again, swallowing hard, face screwing up in pain. "…I can't."

"…Maybe you will…" She leaned against him. "…Maybe one day you will…"

He said nothing, taking in a steadying breath, shuddering as fresh waves of grief began to wash over him. Kyana reached an arm up to hold him in a one-armed hug; and the two teens sat upon the roof, watching the moon arc across the sky high above.

"_Wonder where you are_..." Nash whispered.

* * *

Late morning rays of sunlight peeked through the slits in the window, shining down through the cracks, baring down into the man's eyes, getting him to blink himself awake with a bleary frown. A hand reached up to wipe the tire from his eyes, shaking his head.

He reached out, picking the Scroll up off of his bedside table, staring at the early afternoon time. A groan escaped him as he sat up.

With a sigh, he spun, throwing a leg over the side of the bed, bare foot touching down onto the floorboards below. After a moment, he reached to the side, picking up the hefty construction of silver, gleaming in the sparse light, bringing it over to himself, hands working to lock it into place.

His other hand reached over to his table, snatching the brilliant silver necklace from its surface, dark jewel inlaid within. As he rose, he grabbed the crutch beside him, placing it under his arm as he began to stiffly march from the dark room, throwing his door open to step out into the sprawling, warmly lit interior of considerably sized home. His hand lashed out to grab the glimmering silver and gold jacket as he went, throwing it on, patting the envelope held snugly in its inside pocket.

He sent a look around curiously for a moment, before beginning to make his way towards the beautifully carved double doors at the entrance. He froze, taking a steadying breath as his hands reached for the handle. His eyes opened as he threw the doors open, raising a hand to ward off the bright desert sun, a passerby looking up; a grin crossing her face, giving a wave.

Rainier gave her a strained smile in return, standing in the doorway for a moment. Another deep steadying breath left him, golden gaze closing. Finally, his eyes opened, grin spreading out wider across his face, as he stepped out into Tear's Fall, softly closing his villa's doors behind him.


	3. Chapter 3: Somewhere to Belong

**Chapter 3: Somewhere to Belong**

* * *

A bell chimed out as the door opened, the man behind the counter perking up at the sound, turning on his heel with a broad grin.

There was a moment of stilted shuffling- before Rainier nodded to the woman holding the door for him, giving her a smile. "_Gracias_, ma'am."

"Of course, Rainier." She said as she turned to walk away, leaving the faunus standing inside.

"Mr. Platina!" The man called as the aforementioned wolf began to hobble his way forwards, perched on his crutch, human-like mechanical prosthetic propped beneath him, a touch shorter than his natural limb clad in a steel-toed boot. "Welcome, welcome! It's a pleasure to finally see you here after so long!"

The faunus smiled as he reached the counter, leaning against it. "Ah... truthfully, I hadn't expected to ever find myself here. Times change."

"Of course, of course. It might not seem like it to you, but I think we've become too reliant on those CCT towers- you know, I'd say a small service was done when Vale's went down-" Rainier's grin immediately strained. The man waved him off, seemingly oblivious to the shot of tension rushing through his customer. "Ah, you didn't want to hear me ramble. What can I help you with today?"

The faunus reached into his jacket, pulling free the envelope held within, sealed with a red wax howling wolf. He extended it to the man. "I just need this mailed, that's all."

The man took it, looking at its back- before his eyes widened. "Atlas? Schnee Manor- what could a Platina have to do with the Schnees- if you don't mind me asking, of course!"

Rainier stared at him for a moment, the sharp edge in his lupine eyes filling with a touch of sadness. "…Just reaching out to an old friend," He shook his head, grin spreading across his face anew. "No matter, I have the money for such a long-distance transport, of course! What's the price?"

"Ah… well, let's see… air fare will put you at about five hundred lien-"

"-_Five hundred_-" The Platina stopped, closing his eyes as he took a breath in. "…Very well. Five hundred it is."

The man shrugged. "Fare to Atlas isn't exactly inexpensive! It's a long trip, and customs up there are all _sorts_ of messy!" He turned to place the letter in a box, humming as he began filling out paperwork. His gaze turned back towards Rainier over his shoulder. "You're lucky; if you waited any longer, you might not have gotten it mailed!"

"…How so?"

The mailman stopped, looking around conspiratorially, before rounding back towards the young faunus. "…Rumor in the Guild has it that Atlas is preparing to close its borders."

"Close its…" Rainier trailed off, gaze going vacant in thought. Slowly a snarl claimed his face, looking to the side. "_And how exactly is _that_ going to look, General…" _He hissed under his breath.

The man looked at him unsurely for a moment, turning back to continue his work. "Ah, well, it's all just rumors right now, nothing concrete, of course. But we can get your letter out and across the Lucidean in no time. And by no time, I mean about several months."

"Several…" The Vacuoans stared off, before the younger shook his head, placing down a stack of lien onto the counter. "…Very well. _Several months it is."_

The man took it with a grateful head bow. "Thank you for your business, Mr. Platina! Please come back anytime!"

Rainier returned the bow, before turning, smile dropping as he made his way towards the exit, face irritated. With one great push, he threw the door open, stepping out.

* * *

Rainier stepped inside, letting out a sigh as the air conditioning washed over him, the sprawling mechanic's shop alight with sound and light. The faunus looked around curiously for a moment, before turning to march unevenly to the small waiting room, sitting down with a wince, giving his prosthetic an irritated look.

After a moment, one of the distant machines ceased, the sound of boots on concrete getting closer and closer. Caneki Maquin rounded the corner, stopping as she took in Rainier, pulling heavy gloves off, tossing them to the side. She was short and dark skinned, curly hair falling around her head, smothered beneath the puffy cap she wore, awkwardly perched, dressed in loose overalls, splattered heavily in grease.

She gave him a raised eyebrow as she came to a stop. "…You're 20 minutes late, Platina."

The faunus shrugged as he pushed himself to a standing base, hobbling towards her. "I had a stop to make."

"Don't care."

"Of course not," He reached out as he met her, the duo shaking hands before beginning to stroll towards a door off to the side. "How is your father holding up?"

The mechanic shook her head as they stepped into the small, operating room-esque space. "Still sick. Getting better, though, we think. Sit."

Rainier complied, hopping up onto the inclined recliner, watching her as she rounded him, making her around the room, picking up a handful of different tools. "And Nico?"

That brought a smile to her face, turning towards the wolf, leaning against a scrap-laden table. "Oh, you should have _heard_ him when I mentioned that you had stopped by the shop- '_oh, mama! Mama, I want to see Rainier! He sings the prettiest songs, mama! Bring me next time_!'"

The faunus looked around the room curiously. "Then where is the little _chico_?! How dare you keep him from me!"

Caneki shook her head, giving him a sour, though amused, look. "He has school. I'm not letting him out just so you can corrupt him, _guitarrista_."

"I resent that implication. I will make your son the greatest musician this kingdom has ever _seen_."

The mechanic turned on her heel, pointing a screwdriver the faunus' way. "He'll be a mechanic like his mama, and my papa, and my _abuelos _and that's the last I'll hear of it. Now, do you want your leg or not?"

"Oh, yes, _please_. Eagerly."

She marched from the room, leaving him alone for a few moments, his gaze turning around the sprawling room, the massive window on one side letting the warm wasteland sun in, casting the shop in a brilliant orange glow. He snapped back to attention as Caneki reentered-

And dragging behind her on a cart was a massive length of gold and silver, gleaming in the light, alongside a variety of tools and rubber implements.

Rainier sat up, eyes going slightly wide as he stared at the Wolf's Claws brought to his side, yellow gaze looking it over. "…_Well_," He muttered, hand reaching out towards it. "…That's… _very_ attractive."

The mechanic swiftly lashed out to slap his hand away, giving him a dark glare. "Hands off, Platina. I don't want to see that with a single smudge until you're out of my shop."

"That… well, you'll have to excuse my language, but… that's damned gorgeous. Gold?"

"Coated," She said, beginning to buzz around him, hands going to his own far more banal prosthetic, working it free from its latch. "All silversteel, as always. Don't worry; it's as tough as the rest of them are."

His gaze slowly soured. "…They could always be more durable."

"On that, don't you dare bring this one back shorn to shreds like you did the other one," She warned, socket wrench shoved into his face. "Hardly any of it was even salvageable."

"I hadn't _intended_ for that to happen," He muttered, eyes turning away from her, expression darkening. "…Some things just simply _happened_."

Caneki slowed, taking in his expression with tiny look of concern. She cleared her throat as she turned back to the cart, pulling out a cylinder of rubber and steel, dropping it down onto the table beside him.

The faunus' attention turned back towards her, looking the piece over. "…And what is that?"

"New fitting." She said, returning to her work unfastening the other cylinder attached to his thigh.

"New… fitting…" He muttered, face turning up in distaste. "I'm good but thank you."

The mechanic twisted, getting him to let out a hiss of pain, flat stare turning to the wolf. "…Yours is outdated, Platina. It's been for a while. You want the new leg, you're going to need the new fitting," At his downtrodden expression, she rolled her eyes. "Don't be such a baby, you'll have anesthesia, you won't feel a thing."

"I'm more worried about being sore for the next week," He muttered, shaking his head. "Fine. Get it over with."

"Yuri!" She called, a small shout of surprise greeting her. "You're up!"

From the hall she'd come from, another individual marched out, a cart of his own pulled behind him; he was slimmer, skin suntanned, messy blonde hair atop his head. His cart was laden with much more surgical looking tools.

The faunus looked up as he entered, blinking in slight surprise. "...Yuri."

The man gave him a small smile, struggling to meet his gaze. "...Hey, Rainier."

"You look well!"

Yuri came up next to him, grabbing a needle from his cart. "Heh, you... you look good too!" Skin darkened in blush, he set about lifting Rainier's leg, tiny smile never leaving his face.

The wolf watched him for a moment, gaze softening, before turning to Caneki on his other side, working on her own preparations. "Miss Maquin, if this hurts, I'll leave you a _very_ poor review."

"Go ahead," She said with a nonplussed shrug. "I'm the best mechanic this side of the Wastes. See how much I care. Head back, stop tensing."

Rainier complied, leaning back as the needle entered his leg, a shock of cold rushing through him. He let out a small sigh as the duo began unfastening his fitting from his leg, the whir of mechanics filling the small room. "How've you been, Yuri?" He asked, not turning his eyes from the ceiling.

"Oh, uh!" The man said, bowing his head bashfully for a moment. "Just... living the dream, you know. Heh."

"Course... course."

"Hey," Caneki said, elbowing Yuri. "Focus before you nick an artery."

"Yes," The faunus mumbled. "We would like to avoid that, wouldn't we..."

Yuri dutifully returned back to his work, his gaze shifting between his patient's face and leg. "So, uh... how've you been? We, uh... haven't really talked since... you know, before you left for Vale."

"Hm..." Rainier hummed, eyebrows furrowing. "Just peachy. It hasn't been the worst year of my life though, so there's always that." He finished, muttering under his breath.

The two working on him stalled for a moment, before Caneki inclined her head to the side. "Your part's done. Go get cleaned up."

The man cleared his throat. "Of- of course. Right... it was good to see you again, Rainier. We should... you know, hang out sometime. Just like old times."

"...Of course," Yuri turned stiffly on his heel, beating a hasty retreat, disappearing around the corner. Rainier's face split with a small smile. "...He hasn't changed at all, has he."

"Like a lovesick puppy," Caneki said with a snort. "You might have well had a welcome home parade when you came back into town, for all the people who were talking about how much they missed you."

"Hm... that would've been awkward, wouldn't it. And what about you?"

"If you'd flirted with me one more time, I would've put a Phillips head into your eye," She slowed, looking over him. "...But you're not that Rainier anymore, are you? Not their Rainier, at least."

The wolf was silent for a moment, eyes opening to stare at the warm lights overhead. "...No. No I'm not."

"Well, it is still you. And... it's good to have you back, Platina. Alright, just one more... twist, and... you're done."

Rainier blinked; wide, lupine gaze shifting slightly loopily from the ceiling as one last, hefty jerk rocked him, a gentle hum sounding out over the small shop. He turned down to the mechanic at his side as she stepped away; her gloves tossed aside, her hat returned to her head, wiping sweat from her brow.

"Alright," She said. "You're all set, Platina. That fitting should last you a couple of years, and that leg better last longer than that."

The faunus' eyes further lowered to his leg, staring down at the brilliant gleam of Wolf's Claws, the remnants of his right thigh still cool and numb with the anesthesia, rubber sleeve rising up to his hip. Cautiously, he lifted the prosthetic, the new limb bending slowly towards him.

A grin found its way to his face as he shifted out of the chair, the golden claws touching down onto the concrete.

"Phenomenal," He said quietly, resting his full weight down. "Simply _phenomenal_." He stomped down hard, the plates shifting as his cannon emerged.

"Woah, woah," She barked, rounding the wolf to stare hard at him. "No guns in the shop."

The cannon retracted, Rainier turning to her with a less than sincerely regretful look. "Apologies, apologies. It's gorgeous. You do brilliant work, my dear."

"Yeah, yeah. Don't break this one, or we'll have words. You'll be happy to hear, though, that this one's usable with Dust. Ergo the new fitting."

He stilled, looking to her in surprise. "That's… well. Indeed. That's good to know."

"Getting cannon shots with Dust in them's on you, though," The duo began to make their way back out towards the lobby, the hum of other mechanics working within echoing out towards them. They came to a stop at the front counter, Caneki rapidly working over her computer. "Rest of the payment."

He pulled out a stack of lien, setting them down. He nodded his head to her. "Thank you for your excellent service, my dear. It's been a pleasure. Give the family my regards!"

"You too. Take it easy, Rainier," She said, voice softening. "...And take care of yourself."

His smile twisted sadly as he began to walk away, giving her a hand wave. "…Always." He said quietly.

* * *

The wolf stepped through the gate, closing it softly shut behind him; the sprawling, yard ahead of him was spectacularly green, a winding stone path leading both to and around the villa, flower beds filled with long dead flowers dotting the ground. His gaze turned towards the large, though mostly one-story home, before following the path around it, sequestered between the villa and the walls that surrounded it, the sound of waves lapping against the cliffs on the far side of the house carrying over to him.

From the garden he stepped into a large training yard, well-worn dummies dotting the landscape, a sand pit between them. Rainier stilled for a moment, eyes softening with sadness, swallowing hard. Finally, he walked towards them, hand resting onto one of the dummies, giving a small smile as he rounded it. He took a few steps back, sizing up the target, shifting uncertainly.

He lashed out with a lightning fast kick, cracking it against the dummy's head, the sound of metal striking metal sounding out through the yard. He backed off again quickly, beginning to slowly bounce on his feet, bobbing side to side, smile beginning to widen and brighten. Wolf's Claws hissed as he lashed out, leaping into the air with a spin, striking the dummy's head again.

Rainier fell into a spin, kicking out at its base, the dummy shaking with the impact. He kipped up onto his feet, ducking away with a grin, swiping at his face, bouncing energetically from boot to Claws. He dashed forwards with a flurry of offense, harrying the target with lightning quick strikes, the cloth and metal of the dummy beginning to lacerate with the cavalcade of kicks.

"Nice to see you training again."

The faunus jolted back to reality with a jump, slinking away from the dummy as his attention turned towards the door to the villa, surprised.

Remy leaned against it, arms crossed, dressed in his loose, desert colors, silver hair combed neatly on his head, stubble beginning to thicken across his jaw. His lupine gaze shifted to the dummy with a raised eyebrow. "You did quite a number on that stationary object that can't defend itself."

Rainier adjusted his jacket with a small, though thin smile, stepping away. "Ah… I just wanted to give the new Claws a test. See how they... performed."

The elder platina pushed off his perch, looking his brother's prosthetics up and down, scowling slightly. "…Bit... _much_, don't you think?"

"Well… no one can say I'm anything if _not_ a bit much."

Remy reached out to ruffle his brother's hair, rounding back to the villa. "I'm giving you a hard time, pup. Come on in, lunch is here."

There was a beat of silence as Rainier hesitated. A small sigh escaped him as he gave the training yard one last look, following after the older wolf, the glass doors electronically sliding shut behind him, the coolness of the interior washing over him.

The brothers began to march through the warmly lit villa, winding around the dark wood interior towards the large kitchen beckoning them, pristine white marble shining across nearly every surface in the room.

Remy tossed Rainier a Styrofoam box as they entered, the younger faunus looking in at the steaming empanadas inside, his jacket tossed away. A small, wistful smile crossed his face as he closed it, strolling past the White Wolf.

"And where've _you_ been all day."

The younger Platina froze in his tracks at the deep voice, lilting with his familiar accent; his hands clenching slightly around the box. He continued on his path forwards, turning to hop onto the counter, his gaze settling onto the speaker.

Leonardo Platina was an older man, well into his middle age; a battle-hardened, scarred, stonily stoic visage staring out at his youngest son, thin beard covering most of his face. Long, rapidly whitening silver hair fell down to his shoulders. His well-muscled form was covered in fine, casual black clothing, sleeves rolled up as he dug into his own meal.

Rainier looked down to his new pair of Wolf's Claws. "I've been getting my new leg, if you couldn't tell."

Leo grunted, looking back down to the tablet-like Scroll next to his plate. "…Did you finally sendoff that letter."

"…I did."

The eldest Platina's hard gaze met his son's challenging one, lips screwing up in a slight look of distaste, baring the overlong fangs of his canines. "I would've thought you'd forget the Atlesian-"

"_Weiss Schnee_," Rainier said lowly. "That is her name, as I've told you time and time again."

"And now she's on the other side of the world," Leo said, dropping his napkin down onto the tabletop. "But _you're_ still stuck in Beacon."

"_Still stuck_-" Rainier hissed, only stopping as his father gave him a warning look. He took a steadying breath, schooling his face back into a mostly neutral expression. "…I am _not_ still '_stuck in Beacon_'. It _is_ possible to care about someone, even if they are not here, if you were not aware."

"It is not about _her_; it is about _you_ and refusing to move on."

"Move on?" The youngest Platina asked, tossing his box to the side.

"Rain-" Remy began in exasperation, looking back and forth between the two wolves.

"_Move on_?" Rainier continued. "Move on from my school being burned to the ground, my friends attacked and killed, everything I knew for _nine months_ being torn from me? Is _that_ what you want me to move on from?"

The White Wolf stepped forwards, lifting his hands to the duo. "_Stop_-"

"Yes, _that's_ what I want you to move on from," Leo called out sternly, staring hard at his son. "Because this world can be cruel, and it can be unfair, and you have to learn to live with that; instead of sitting here like you've been for half a year now, brooding and dwelling on a past that you have lost and that you can't change-"

"-Yes, Leonardo fucking Platina, lecturing _me_ on moving on, that is _certainly_ a quaint notion!"

"_Careful_, Rainier," Leo growled, fangs bared. "...Pick your next words _carefully_."

The two wolves glared off for a long moment, the younger's gaze snapping to Remy's disappointed one. A snarl crossed his face, and he hopped from his perch, storming past his family towards the villa's entrance, snatching up his jacket as he went.

Leonardo's gaze stayed locked forwards, hands folding in front of him. "Where are you going?" He called out evenly.

"_Out_." Was Rainier's only biting reply, lifting a weathered and old acoustic guitar from its stand. The doors to the villa opened briefly, before slamming shut.

Remy and Leo stood and sat respectively in the kitchen quietly for a moment. The latter turned over his shoulder to the exit of the room, his gaze softening slightly. A sigh escaped him as he turned back forwards, pushing his lunch away from himself, wiping at his mouth with his napkin.

The White Wolf stared at his father for a long, quiet second. "…Give him a break, father."

"…He needs to learn to move on," The Platina patriarch muttered. "It's been six months. He can't stand still forever."

"And he'll do it. Just on his own terms. You're not making it any easier. He went through hell at Beacon... you can remember your first night like that, can't you?"

Leo hummed lowly. "_Of course_," He rose to his feet, turning on his heel to march away. "I'll be in my study."

Remy watched his father go, gaze shifting from the direction he'd disappeared to, to the direction his brother disappeared to, a sigh escaping his lips. "…_Where are you, mother_…"

* * *

The man pushed his cart forwards, a middling selection of crops held within, staring down at it with exhausted, irritated eyes, a small scowl planted on his face.

He pivoted hard as the child next to him teetered, nearly falling in his way, both coming to a stop. His hand reached out to latch onto her wrist, spinning her around to look at him; her eyes blinked hazily, struggling hard to stay awake. He shook his head. "You need to…" His words died in his mouth, gaze rising to the road leading into the town, narrowing at the six figures stepping towards him, dust rising in their wake.

"Run along," He said, pushing the child away from the road. "Who are you all?" He called out to the figures.

Daria stepped ahead of her team, raising a hand. "Just travelers. Is this Al-Medjek?"

"This is." He nodded warily, looking around to the other villagers coming out to the edge of the road, watching the huntsmen walk forwards.

Oracle shrugged, looking to her leader. "It's the last town for a while. Could stop for the day, head out in the morning."

"Seconded," The Mistrali said with a nod, turning back to the man. "Do you-"

"-If you've got any sense, you'll move on," He cut in curtly, letting his cart come to rest on the well-worn road. "This isn't a place to stop in."

The sextet watched him for a moment, Lance giving him a frown. "…Well, what the fuck?"

Gail gave him a side-ways glance as she stepped forwards, expression and voice soft. "Why… can't we stay? It's- we've been travelling for a long-"

"This town's cursed," He said, spitting off to the side. "If you know what's good for you, you'll keep moving, try and make it to the next town."

"There _isn't_ a next town." Oracle muttered.

Daria sighed, shaking her head. "...Alright, alright. We'll keep moving after we stock up on some supplies. Deal?"

The man looked over them, giving a short, tilted nod. "We don't have much, but you're welcome to trade for what we have," He gestured to a small building off the side of the road. "That's where you'll want to go. _Wadae_, travelers."

She nodded to him as he continued taking his cart away, the gathered villagers dispersing to return to their duties.

"Well that was weird," Lance said, glaring around at the townspeople. "And really _rude_."

"It's fine," Daria shot back, beginning to march away. "We'll just try and find a good stop to camp out tonight."

She, alongside Oracle and Gail, took off towards the shop pointed out to them, leaving the trio of men standing on the road. The greatswordsman's gaze washed over Shinai and Ulysses, the duo quiet. Lance rolled his eyes as he strolled down the road at a leisurely pace, hands folded behind his head.

His gaze turned from the sky as he reached the other edge of the village, turning down to the road- his pensive look slowly fading, being replaced with a cold shock of recognition. Blue eyes washed over the mess of divots and prints dug deep in the dirt and sand, the huntsman raising himself up to his full height in apprehension, eyebrows furrowing.

Hoof prints, cart tracks- and tire tracks, dug deep into the soil. He took a step back, attention not rising from the torn-up road. "Hey," He said, grabbing the attention of a woman walking past him. "…Who came through here?"

She stared at him silently for a moment in cautious hesitation. "…Group of soldiers. Mercenaries. Holed up for a day or two before leaving."

Lance slowly turned to her; face pulled in an expression of deadly seriousness. "…How many?"

"…Maybe a couple dozen."

"When'd they leave?"

"Day ago, maybe," She swept past him. "As they'd be smart to do."

The swordsman watched her go, hands clenching into fists, unconsciously turning his right arm over, blue eyes looking down to his bracer-covered forearm. He let a small scowl claim his face as he began to back away from the gate, turning to march towards the others.

Shinai looked up with a curious, raised eyebrow as he approached. Lance looked between him and his former partner, Ulysses leaning against his bike. "O and the others come out yet?"

"No." The samurai said quietly, eyes washing over his former teammate's expression curiously.

Without another word, the greatswordsman took off towards the shop, slowing as the door opened up, the huntresses stepping out. Oracle peered over her glasses at the grave expression on his face. "You alright, hon?"

He looked between her and Daria. "…We need to hole up here for the night, hell with the warnings."

"Wait, why?" The Mistrali said, frowning. "Burning their hospitality's not exactly at the top of my list."

"…There's some people about a day ahead of us that we don't want to catch up with."

"What does that mean?"

"It- trust me on this, alright?"

Before Daria could cut in, Oracle raised a hand, giving the swordsman a serious once over. "…Couldn't hurt to see if they've got any lodgin' for us, right?"

Their leader looked between them, suspicious, for a moment. Finally, she let out a deep sigh, shaking her head. "Fine. We'll go see if they've got an inn. Come on, Gail."

The archer hesitated for a moment, looking between the two members of SOUL. "…Are you alright?" She asked quietly. Lance gave her a single, small nod in response. "…Alright…" Slowly, Gail dragged herself away, following after Daria.

Oracle didn't budge, though, staring at her friend in concern. "…You _really_ alright, darlin'?"

"Just, uh…" The huntsman shook his head, rubbing the back of his neck, still obviously distressed. "…Just want to keep us out of that kind of trouble is all."

"If you say so," The duo stared off for a moment, before Oracle inclined her head to the side. "Well, come on then, blondie. Let's go see if they've got any drinks in this hole."

That finally brought a small smile back to the swordsman's face. "Not a bad idea, cowgirl. After you."

* * *

The bullhead whirred to a stop as it touched down onto the landing pad, vastly ignored by the people marching around the bay, other ships coming and going casually, the space a flurry of activity.

No one reacted as the side of the craft hissed with steam, the door sliding to the side as its motors finally fell silent.

No one gave the man hopping from the ship a second glance, dark boots crashing down to the metal pad.

Vegas looked around with dark, golden eyes, his cloak effortlessly hiding Dragon's Fang at his side, golden hair wild around his head. The pilot nodded to the killer, head bowed low.

"Go with our Queen's grace." He said, before the bullhead began to roar back to life, its rotors whirring as it took back off, disappearing into the stream of ships above head, soaring off into the distance.

Vegas watched it go with an undisguised snarl before turning forwards, pulling his hood over his head. His gaze washed over the massive palm trees and towering, steel and glass skyscrapers of the city, the skies awash with ships and crafts. His eyes finally settled onto the sprawling campus of Shade Academy in the distance.

His snarl only deepened as he began to stalk forwards, disappearing into the crowd leaving the landing bay, marching towards Vacuo City intently.


	4. Chapter 4: Town That Dreads Sundown

**Chapter 4: Town That Dreads Sundown**

* * *

The currents rushed past Gail, pulling lazily at her limbs floating around her, the archer suspended amidst an abyss.

Dark eyes looked idly around her, searching the ever stretching darkness, eyebrows furrowing; each movement was slow, as if moving through sludge.

As if underwater.

Gail's eyes slowly widened in horrified realization, sucking in a deep breath as the nearly crushing pressure became more and more apparent, her lungs beginning to scream at her in strain.

A light began to shine above her, drawing her gaze upwards-

There, the surface of the water, the waves rippling, alight with the sun above her head. Without a moment of hesitation, she began to push herself upwards, frantically swimming towards the light just a few tantalizing meters above her.

And still a few tantalizing meters above her.

And still.

Her arms and legs began to groan with stress and exertion as a panic began to set over her, her form lost, scrambling through the darkness, trying desperately to force her way to the surface, never seeming to get any closer.

The horrific loop was broken as something brushed against her foot.

She jolted, spinning in her spot, staring at the abyss around her, the rays of the sun not breaking through the depths below her.

Her heart skipped a beat-

And something latched onto her ankle.

A scream ripped its way out of her chest, the breath leaving her lungs, bubbles surrounding her head. Gail lashed out at the hand, breaking its grip, resuming her terrified ascent, all composure lost, water beginning to wash down her mouth and fill her lungs, eyes continuing to widen in horror.

Suddenly, the surface of the water broke, a hand reaching down, extended urgently towards her.

Her eyes widened even further, scrambling through the dark to push her way towards the outstretched lifeline, this time making progress upwards-

A hand snatched onto her ankle again, stalling her rise. Adrenaline flooded through her, arms lashing out around her, trying desperately to reach the hand, her own limb stretching up towards it.

Their fingertips met-

And another hand grabbed onto her leg, pulling her just out of reach of the surface, her eyes widening.

And another hand.

And another hand.

Dozens of grasping claws latched onto her legs, talons digging into her flesh as they began to drag her down into the abyss, even as she fought and struggled, screams lost to the sea.

Falling farther, and farther, the hand beginning to fade from view, the sun lighting the surface dimming more and more.

She stared up at her lost lifeline with a terrified gaze, before the darkness consumed her.

* * *

Gail shot to a sitting position with wide eyes, huffing desperately for air, her lungs gleefully filling. She slumped in her bed, a hand raising up to wipe the thick layer of sweat from her forehead. Her breathing began to slow as she leaned back against her headboard, letting out a sigh, the adrenaline draining from her.

After a moment, she swung her legs over the bed, setting them down onto the smooth stone floor, grabbing her Scroll from her bedside table-

6:16 am.

The archer let out a sigh as she rose to her feet, gathering her things as she began to dress in her travelling gear, slinging Sunsinger over her shoulder. She sent one last look over the small room, before stepping out into the hallway.

And nearly collided hard with Lance, the swordsman lifting a hand to her to stop her from slamming into him. She blinked in surprise, looking up into his own tired eyes.

"...Sup." He muttered, turning to continue his march back down the hall.

Gail watched him go for a moment quietly, looking back down the way he'd come, eyebrows furrowing. She made her way to the door beside hers, rapping her knuckles across her surface.

"Yeah?" Daria muttered in irritation.

"It's Gail."

There was a moment of silence. "…Come on in, I guess."

The Mo'alauan stepped inside; dark, tired gaze meeting dark, tired gaze as Daria finished putting her hair up into its bun, letting her Infinitas rest on their hooks.

"Is everyone awake?" Gail asked quietly, hands folded in front of her as she leaned against the wall, face falling in confusion.

Her leader stilled, frowning. "Are they? I had a nightmare, couldn't go back to sleep."

The room chilled slightly as their eyes met, Gail's eyebrows only furrowing deeper. "…So did I."

The huntresses stared at each other for a moment. Daria began to march steadfastly to the door, frowning. "Come on." They stepped out, looking down the hallway of the small inn.

Oracle perked up at the sight of them, marching forwards, her hands in the air. "The hell is going on?"

"I was hoping you could tell me." Daria muttered.

"Y'all have nightmares?" The other huntresses nodded. "Lance and Ul too."

"Where's Shinai?"

"Dunno, haven't seen him since last night."

* * *

Shinai looked around the village with a frown, eyebrows furrowed. As if on cue, the entire town came to life; lights coming to life in windows, people stepping from their homes to march towards the trading post or restaurant, dogs and cats beginning to roam the streets.

The entire village began their day at the same time; and every person seemed uniformly exhausted, eyes dark with sleep deprivation.

"I'm totally lost," Lance said lowly, stepping up beside his former leader. "The hell's going on?"

The samurai was silent for a moment. "…I'm not sure."

"Creepy as shit though, _that's_ for sure."

The trio of huntresses exited the inn besides them, looking around in equal parts concerned and confused. Oracle tipped her hat back on her head. "Anyone got any ideas?"

Daria shook her head. "None. Come on, let's go get some breakfast. Maybe figure out what the hell's happening. Where's Ul?"

Lance inclined his head to the side, their gazes shifting to the shadows cast by the building; at the mention of his name, Ulysses pushed himself off of the wall, beginning to march back towards the rest of his team, coming to a stop a few meters from them. The hulking huntsman was even more outwardly calcitrant than usual; his face twisted in a permanent sneer, dark eyes even darker with exhaustion, massive arms crossed over his chest unmoving.

Their leader gave him a nod as they set off towards the small diner off the main road- the sextet swerved around the people beginning to march to their duties, a loud hubbub settling over the town as it began to shake its cobwebs away, the sun beginning to peek over the tops of the distant mountains.

The citizens of Al-Medjek, though, gave them wide berths, their gazes wary as they watched the huntsmen march forwards.

"I don't _like_ _this_." Ulysses muttered lowly, lips beginning to tug into a snarl.

"They don't trust us." Daria shot back quietly, keeping a close eye on the citizens.

Lance snorted. "The feeling's mutual."

They stepped through the doors into the small diner, the few inhabitants within giving them slightly narrowed looks, though no one said anything. The woman at the counter perked up, cocking her head to the side.

"Newcomers," She said between the cigarette hanging from her mouth, before gesturing around. "Sit anywhere."

The huntsmen made their way to a large corner booth, filing in with matching looks of apprehension. "Alright," Oracle said, hat placed on the table. "What the hell?"

"We all woke up from nightmares, right?" Daria asked, a chorus of assent returning to her- with the exception of Shinai, who simply sat silently. "And then everyone else was up at the same time, right?"

"6:16." Gail muttered.

"Right, so… we're not just crazy."

Lance leaned back in his seat, hands folded behind his head. "Well, that's debatable."

"Not now, Zaffre. Anyone got any ideas?"

Oracle sighed. "…Could be grimm."

They looked to each other quietly, a frown finding Gail's face. "…They can do things like… _this_?"

"Sounds about right," Lance muttered. "Shit can get weird with them. We've honestly lucked out pretty hard so far."

"Grimm do feed off negative emotions," Daria said. "Fear's…" She trailed off, as a hush fell over the group. "…We've seen how much they like fear."

The sextet was silent for a moment, before Oracle cleared her throat. "Aight, so we've got a grimm. Who knows what kind or how many. These people obviously don't got a godsdamned idea what they're dealing with, otherwise they'd have got in contact with Shade or Al-Mawi."

"The Temple isn't far from here either." Shinai said quietly.

Daria nodded. "So they don't know it's a grimm, assuming it is. Maybe they're superstitious, think it's a curse or something."

"Which would explain why they don't trust us." Lance added.

Oracle looked around, red eyebrow raised. "So, what's the plan?"

The huntsmen lapsed back into thoughtful quiet before their leader shook her head. "I mean, we're obviously sticking around."

"…We are?" Oracle asked, leaning forwards in confusion. "I- listen, hon, I appreciate where you're coming from, but we can't just stop and solve every single problem we see. If you don't remember, we're on a bit of a tight schedule-"

"We're huntsmen," Daria shot back sternly, glaring him down. "These people are in trouble. So we're going to help them, reward or no reward. That's our duty. _We. Don't. Run." _She looked around at her team flatly.

The gunslinger shook her head. "Listen, I get it, but- I'm tryin' to keep us pragmatic, aight? Time's not exactly on our side. These people are still kicking, so I bet by the time we reach Vacuo, they'll still be kicking, and we can send someone else down to take care of this."

"But it might also be too late. I'm not taking that chance."

"She's right," Lance shot back curtly, before either huntress could continue. "No one gets left behind."

Oracle's face softened as he spoke up. She let out a soft sight, head falling. "...Alright. What's our plan, then?"

"If it's a grimm, it's not the type to hunt, so it'll probably be hiding somewhere." Daria continued, her eyebrows furrowed in concentration.

"But… it might not be a grimm though," Gail said. "I… my home is very superstitious; I've heard lots of tales of curses and all of that… maybe something darker is going on?"

"I've seen a few things," Lance shot back. "And I've never seen curses or blessings or magic that wasn't anything more than some sort of hustle. My money's on a grimm- what kind, I dunno."

The archer gave him a tiny nod, gaze averting elsewhere, leaning back in her seat. Daria took a breath, eyes moving from her back to the others. "We'll keep every avenue open. We'll ask around, see what we can put together- how long this has been going on, if it affects everyone in the town, if it's getting any worse. And let's not piss anyone else off," She gave the blonde swordsman a hard side glance. "We'll meet back up for dinner at the inn, see what we've figured out. Plan?"

"Plan." Oracle said.

"Alright. Move on out."

* * *

Rainier stared out at the setting sun, golden eyes searching the skyline in the distance, the faunus sat atop a small sun-baked hut. He let out a sigh, a breeze washing over him, as his fingers played idly away at the guitar laid across his lap.

The melody rang out over the small, quiet town around him; the sound warm, though somber, the faunus lost in his own thoughts, gaze settling on the middle distance.

"_Once we were in our peace, with our lives assured,_" He sang under his breath absent-mindedly, fingers trailing over the strings and frets. "_Once we were not afraid of the dark... once we raised our glasses, ... once we were not afraid of the dark..." _He stalled in his playing, head falling with a sigh, eyes trailing to the beat up instrument. "I suppose I must seem like a stranger to you as well..."

He moved to resume his quiet serenading- when hands wrapped around his face, blocking out his vision. The faunus jolted in surprise, muscles tightening, beginning to move to free himself, legs coiling beneath him.

"Guess _whooo_~"

Rainier froze in the midst of his motion, anger fading to surprise, the tension leaving him. He didn't move to remove the hands from his eyes, simply inclining his head back slightly. "..._Ceryse_?"

The woman released her grip on him, leaning around the faunus to grin into his face, even as he shifted slightly away from her. Ceryse was pale skinned and thin, red-pink hair falling wavily down her back, electric blue eyes wide with giddiness. Her sharp features were lined with red-brown feathers that faded up into her hairline. She was dressed in billowing pinks and browns, though much of it was riddled with small holes and tears, little if any aspect of her outfit symmetrical as well.

"Rainy!" She cooed, lunging forwards to pull him into a tight hug, nearly sending both faunus crashing down to the rooftop. He laid for a moment, still in shock, before lightly returning the embrace, pushing them back up to sitting positions. Ceryse shifted to sit beside him, eyes never once leaving his face, mouth pulled into a wide, satisfied grin.

He returned her stare uncertainly, swallowing as he looked around the otherwise quiet village winding down for the night. "Uh... Ceryse... It's... good to see you! I..." He trailed off, searching for words that refused to come.

She shimmied up beside him, leaning her shoulder against his. "You don't need to say it, Rainy, I know! It's been so_ long!_"

"I... three years, correct?"

"Just about... _just about_," Her expression soured slightly before returning to its previous ecstasy. "So how've _you_ been, Rainy?"

"I... well, I... I've... I've been through it, I suppose," He said with a slight chuckle. The brief bout of humor faded, golden eyes shifting to her with guarded curiousity. "...Ceryse, they released you? Just recently?" She jolted, eyes widening even further, electric gaze turning away from him, refusing to meet the wolf's gaze. His expression fell in exasperation. "Ceryse, no, _don't_ tell me you-"

"I had to see you!" She cried, face filled with desperation, taking his hands in hers, mood changing instantly. "I heard that you were back home, and- and I had to come see you! They wouldn't let me see you, they _never_ let me-"

"-Did they clear you?" Her silence was more than enough of an answer for him. "You know _why_ you had to stay, Ceryse-"

"-It was worth it if I could come see you!" She cupped his face in a hand. "I've missed you so much, Rainy- and- and when I heard what had happened in Vale, I- I-" Tears began to well in her eyes, resolve crumbling. "I thought that- that maybe you were _dead_."

"...Ceryse," He sighed, hand finding hers. He gave her a supportive smile. "...I haven't crossed that particular sea just yet. Look at me," Blue met gold. "I'm still alive. And, despite it all- you're here. How _did_ you find me, anyhow?"

Her despair drained from her expression, wiping stray tears from her eyes and cheeks; a coy, nervous smile claimed her face, her free hand tapping her thigh anxiously. "...Well, I... saw you leave Tear... and-"

"-You've been following me all day?" Rainier asked, an exasperated, though amused grin matching her own. "And you never once thought to stop me before we arrived?"

"I... wanted to see where you were going," Her gaze turned to the now mostly departed sun on the horizon. "...It's beautiful... do you always come here?"

His face fell. "...Just... when I need to be alone."

Their gazes met again, concern filling hers, hands taking his cheeks again. "Oh, _Rainy_." She began to lean towards him, lips parting, eyes closing.

His hand rested onto her sternum, stopping her motion. "...Ceryse, stop." He said quietly, touch of guilt filling his voice.

Electric blue eyes turned back up towards him again, clouded in confusion. "Rainy?"

"I can't."

"But why not? We always used to-"

"And it's been_ three years_, Ceryse. I..." He pulled away from her, shaking his head. "...I... fell in love."

She similarly leaned away from the wolf, eyebrows furrowing. "But... but what... what about... we were... I thought..."

"Ceryse-"

"-Who is she?" She asked, her gaze going hard, face stoic and stony.

Rainier sighed as turned back towards the skyline, shaking his head. "A... girl I met at Beacon."

"And she's not even here!"

"Does that matter?"

They stared off for a moment, before her gaze fell to the rooftop below, finger idly tracing circles on its surface quietly. "...I thought that we could go back to the way things were... everything would be the same..."

"_I'm_ not even the same person you knew..." He said quietly. "And I doubt you are either..." He took her chin in a hand, raising her eyes back to meet his. "But I do still care about you, Ceryse. I do. Maybe... not the way you wish me too, but... I do... and you need to go back."

She pulled herself from his grasp, shaking her head furiously. "No! I can't, not when I just found you! I just got you back, I can't lose you, not again, not-"

"-Fine, _fine_," He said, raising his hands to her. "Not tonight. I won't make you do anything... but you can't follow me around in Tear's Fall. Father will _make_ you go back."

"Are you going back to Tear's Fall?"

"...Not for the time being-"

She pushed her shoulder back against his defiantly, sitting with a huff, looking out to the darkening sky. "Then I don't need to worry, do I?"

"I... you're impossible."

"You've missed me."

"I don't miss your stubbornness. Truly, though, if they didn't release you-" She turned a glare up to the wolf, cutting him off mid sentence. He sighed, setting his guitar to the side. "Very well, then, Wryneck. No more words about the hospital."

The two faunus sat quietly for a few moments, before she sidled up closer to him, giving a content hum. "...I've missed you." She whispered.

Rainier looked back down to her, gaze filling with both concern and guilt. Another sigh escaped his lips, troubled golden gaze turning back to the last remnants of the sunset on the horizon, fading into night.

* * *

Shinai's breathing left him slowly and rhythmically, eyes closed, face serene, peace settling over him. A cool breeze washed past him, the desert night settling over Al-Medjek, stars twinkling in the abyss above the samurai.

His face screwed up in slight distaste, head cocking to the side as he fidgeted slightly. He let out a heavy breath, form relaxing again, hands coming to rest on his knees, legs crossed beneath him.

In and out.

Slowly and evenly, his breathing returned to normal, expression fading again to its usual serenity.

Like a switch, a snarl claimed his lips, body slumping, muscles coiling in tension. He let out an irritated growl, purple eyes opening to glare out at the chill night ahead of him, the shattered side of the moon facing him proudly, the desert sands dark with the dim moonlight.

The samurai continued to stare forwards with exhausted, baggy eyes sourly. His hands tightened on the halves of Shi En laid across his lap.

"Why?" He whispered, gaze rising to the stars, searching desperately. "_Why? _…I can't _do this… _I need an answer, a direction… _anything_. It wasn't supposed to be like this… _please_…"

The only response was a cool breeze blowing towards him, sand sprinkling across his face. Both despair and defiance flooded from him, his chin coming to rest against his chest, hair falling into his face. After a moment, he took another steadying breath, pulling himself back up to a straight-backed position, grip loosening on the remains of his katana.

Despite the tinge of pain claiming his face, his breathing began to pointedly slow again.

In and out.

The samurai began to fall back into his attempted meditation, the tension slowly draining from him.

In and out.

The breeze seemed to chill even further as it blew past him, turning nearly ice cold, drawing another irritated snarl from the samurai, mist spilling from his lips.

In and-

A scream cut through the night air.

Shinai's eyes shot back open in surprise, purple gaze turning around him; the town began to rise in a terrified chorus, screams and startled or anguished shouts echoing out around him.

Glass shattering joined the cacophony, Al-Medjek beginning to descend into frantic chaos. The samurai's legs uncurled from beneath him, rising to his feet, staring out at the town in sheer shock, gripping Shi En in tight fists.

Gail let out a ear-piercing scream from inside of the inn, Shinai turning on his heel. He hesitated for a moment- before rushing back into the dark depths of the building, more shouts joining the archer's.

* * *

**A/N: RIP RWBY Volume 7. You were a good one. Go easy into that good night. Only six months to bloody Volume 8.**


	5. Chapter 5: From Dusk Till Dawn

**Chapter 5: From Dusk Till Dawn**

* * *

Shinai slid around the corner, excess momentum from his frantic charge nearly carrying him too far. His hand went to the handle of the door before him- locked.

The samurai hesitated- before throwing his shoulder into the wooden frame, the impact sending splinters showering across the room on the other side. His gaze fell to the bed in the corner; its sheets, blankets, and pillows strewn far from it.

And thrashing atop it was Gail, her eyes screwed tightly shut, dark skin soaked in sweat. Tears streamed down her face as she let out a silent scream, her arms flailing out around her, the archer fighting desperately to push herself up the wall. Her body shook, breaths coming in short, choked gasps.

Shinai dashed to her side, hands coming to her shoulders. Gail beat against him frantically, flinching away from the samurai's grasp; her face twisted in a grimace of terror.

"Gail!" He hissed, giving her a shake. "Gail! _Wake up_!"

She didn't respond, continuing to push against him, trying in vain to keep him away. The huntsman finally relented, backing away from her, hands clenching into fists. He took several breaths, looking around the room as his mind whirred to find a solution- he didn't have long, though, before another clamor echoed out through the inn, a chorus of familiar voices raised in distress reaching him.

He gave one last, concerned look to his teammate, then turned to leave- stalling as he did so. His eyes fell onto Sunsinger leaning against the wall, purple gaze narrowing.

As he dashed back towards the hallway, he lashed out to snatch the bow from its resting spot, a handful of arrows gripped in the other hand.

The bolts tucked into his belt, Sunsinger slung around his body, he charged to the next door, putting his ear up against it. "Daria!" He barked out- to no response. Without a moment of hesitation, he took a step back before planting his boot against the handle of the door, sending it flying open. The samurai dashed inside, frenzied gaze shifting around the room.

His leader lay on the floor, back up against the wall; her arms spread out beside her, fingers digging into the plaster. Her eyes were open- though wide as saucers, amber eyes locked onto the ceiling. Her chest rose and fell haphazardly, expression panic-stricken.

Shinai fell to a knee beside her, hand squeezing her shoulder. "Daria-" Her gaze shot to him, though it held no glimmer of recognition. "_Breathe_\- I need you to _breathe_."

She didn't comply, swallowing hard as a hand found him, gripping the dark fabric of his robe tightly.

The samurai stared down at her, struggling to find breath, deep in the throes of her panic. He swallowed hard himself, his hand coming to her wrist- gently tugging it away from him. Shinai rose to his feet, backing away from the Mistrali with a deep breath.

He turned and darted back into the hall, rushing towards the other side, to Oracle's door. He stopped to give himself room to place his boot into it-

And instead was taken off of his feet, as something dark and metallic came ripping through the doors and walls of the inn, kindling flying through the air as dark metal chain and flail tore the hallway to shreds.

Shinai landed hard against stone, rolling with the impact. He sucked in a gasp with wide eyes, struggling to regain his breath, ribs screaming in agony. His hand found bedsheets as he pulled himself back to an upright base, looking over his shoulder.

Lance's face was pulled into a horrified grimace, cheeks tear-stained. His hands balled themselves into his blankets, fists white knuckled. Shinai stared at his distraught teammate for a moment, gaze arcing back to the shattered remains of the wall, grip tightening around Shi En's handle.

There was a beat of silence.

Roaring echoed out through the inn as Ulysses came charging out into the open, rubble and debris following in his wake; massive boots skid across stone as he came to a stop, pitch black gaze shifting around in a frenzy. His shoulders rose and fell with his animalistic grunts and huffs, a furious and unhinged snarl painted across his face.

Shinai winced as he slowly began to creep forwards, stepping around the mess the giant had left in his wake, entering the hallway quietly.

"Ulysses," He said softly, raising a hand. The hulking huntsman froze, body stiffening. Ulysses turned on his heel, dark pools locking onto his former leader. "...Easy, friend. It's me. Shinai. You know me."

The larger huntsman stilled, eyes never leaving the samurai. His features twitched- and his snarl widened, body beginning to tremble.

He opened his mouth wide, and let out a bellowing roar of rage, spittle flying from his lips.

Ulysses tore forwards through the debris ahead of him, the towering plume of smoke rising from him filling the hall as he bullrushed the samurai. Avenger's dark chain spilled behind him before jerking to a stop, the weapon's flail lost in the abyss behind him.

Shinai jolted to attention as his teammate charged forwards, clearing the distance quickly. The samurai leapt backwards at the last moment, dodging the falling paw of the larger huntsman, stone shattering under the impact.

As he came to a stop, Ulysses let out another yell, his weapon hand coming darting forwards, inch after inch of chain following the motion. Avenger yawned out of the darkness, arcing towards Shinai's head. The samurai pivoted, narrowly avoiding the flail, letting it fly past him.

"_Ulysses_!" He barked, returning his teammate's snarl- to no avail, though, as the giant jerked his hand back, Avenger again missing as Shinai ducked, letting it crash back into its owner's waiting hand. The samurai hissed in a breath before dashing forwards.

Ulysses swung out for his former leader, the attack going wide as Shinai fell into a slide, hands redirecting the offending limb away. He leapt back to his feet, spinning as he did so. Boots planted against the giant's back, the samurai vaulting upwards. Sunsinger came free from his back, thick string wrapping around Ulysses' throat.

"_Stop_," Shinai hissed, pulling hard. "Get a hold of yourself!"

Ulysses, instead, began thrashing around the remains of the hallway, fighting to remove the smaller huntsman from his perch, free hand grasping at the air. His face began to darken, the blood flow to his brain restricted more and more. His expression began to twist in panic, boots digging into the ground- and he shot backwards, sending Shinai crashing into the wall, more rubble falling around them.

The samurai let out a gasp of pain, grip on Sunsinger loosening. Ulysses reached back with his free hand, taking hold of the much smaller warrior's arm. With one swift motion, he hurled Shinai over his head, sending him crashing away, rolling across the ground.

Ulysses didn't push his advantage though; instead, he stumbled to the side, putting a hand to his throat with a cough, doubling over. His wide eyes slowly narrowed, his semblance taking hold again. His gaze shifted to where Shinai had leapt to his feet, Gail's bow and arrow nocked.

The giant let out a hoarse howl, storming back towards his former leader, cracks forming across the stone floor in his wake. Avenger swung through the air, mass of black and steel coming to bash down onto Shinai.

Poof.

* * *

Shinai fell in a panicked roll, spinning to his feet as dirt and sand flew around him. He whirled about, looking around Al-Medjek in tense confusion, Sunsinger still nocked in his hands. His breathing slowed, adrenaline draining from him. His gaze found the inn, face falling.

Ulysses' roar emanated from its interior, anguish and pain bleeding into the bellow. Despite the giant's consternation, though, no more of the building was shattered underneath Avenger, and a breath of relief escaped the samurai's lungs.

Shinai's form relaxed, eyes narrowing as he looked around the dark terror that had enveloped the desert town. Gritting his teeth together, he Blossomed away, reappearing high above the village-

And off of his mark, form quickly falling through the cloud of smoke, plummeting down with distressing speed, the dirt and earth below racing towards him.

A frantic hand latched onto the façade of the building beside him, jerking to a stop from his descent. His breathing rose and fell in hard huffs, adrenaline flowing freshly through him.

The samurai cast his gaze around as he finally came to rest, fingers gripping the old sandstone building tightly.

Al-Medjek far beneath him was nearly pitch black; the buildings all devoid of life, the moon offering precious little of its own life. But the village itself seemed even darker; the shadows longer and thicker, the lights that lined the weathered roads flickered out into nothingness.

"_Where are you_..." Shinai muttered under his breath, scanning the depths below him with a slight scowl. He wasn't kept waiting long before an ear-piercing scream of pain echoed out, even above the din of terror that had enveloped the village.

The screech only lasted a moment, fading until imperceptible under the other shouts of panic filling the air.

Shinai's eyes narrowed, Blossoming away. He landed in a rough roll, leaping back to his feet, charging off after the scream, boots pounding desperately against loose sand and earth. He wound his way through the depths of the village, rushing through dark alleys and small paths as fast as his body would take him, the burning in his chest lingering in the back of his mind.

His rush was so frantic he nearly stumbled over the body ahead of him, leaping at the last moment. The samurai slid through the sand to come to a stop, purple gaze falling to the desiccated corpse behind him; both hair and skin pale, the latter pulled taught against bones, eyes rolled into the back of its head.

Shinai only stared for a moment before turning to continue his mad rush, hands gripping Sunsinger tightly around him.

He tore forwards for what felt like eternity, eyes darting between the shadows around him vigilantly.

And his vigil paid off as something dashed past the alley beside him, quickly disappearing out of view.

Poof.

The samurai dashed from the cloud, bow and arrow nocked tight, staring down the dark shaft of the bolt- directly into the face of a wide-eyed, terrified man, a gasp escaping the civilian.

Shinai lowered Sunsinger silently, glaring at him expectantly. The man jolted back to life, struggling to force words out. Instead, he stammered wildly, fidgeting under the samurai's stare; dark gaze turning from the huntsman to the alley that he'd just darted from.

"It- it- he- it had- the- it-"

"Where?" Shinai asked flatly, leaning towards him.

The man lifted a trembling finger to point into the darkness behind them. The huntsman followed the gesture- not reacting as the man continued his horrified escape, disappearing around the corner and into the night.

Shinai held the bow and arrow at the ready as he began to stalk forwards, cautious gaze flitting to and fro, ears perked; trying to pick out any sounds beneath the wailing chorus that had consumed the town.

Glass shattering sent him jolting to attention, whirring on his heel to the dark house the sound had come from, arrow pulled tightly against its string. He swallowed hard, slowly creeping towards it. He went stock still as he reached the house, choked gasps echoing out towards him.

The samurai pressed himself up against the limestone of the house, laying himself as flat as possible, drawing in a deep breath. He inched to the side, to the small window, leaning in to peek into the dark interior.

Amidst the rubble and chaos of the room, a shadow stood in the center of the floor; tall, shaggy hair covered head brushing against the ceiling, the similar shagginess cladding the rest of its amorphous form.

Shinai's purple eyes widened as his gaze shifted from it down to the body beneath it; the man was pale, mouth and eyes wide open as gasps and choked sounds emanated from him.

He was raised into the air slightly; two over long, jointed pairs of hands wrapping around his body, holding him up as his skin began to stretch over rapidly diminishing muscles.

The samurai stepped back, swallowing hard as he drew Sunsinger's arrow, the steel string stretching as he pulled the bolt to its limit-

And the creature whirled its head around towards him.

Its face was far too reminiscent of a human's; a carved white boneplate mask pressed into the shadows of its form. Wide, red and gold eyes stared back into the huntsman's purple, the creature stock still.

Shinai froze, the world around fading to silence aside from the blood rushing through his head as the grimm stared through him.

The moment stretched on for what felt like eternity- before it rushed towards him with nothing but silence, clearing the distance in only a heartbeat. Its white face filled the gap that made up the window- and then was through it, its massive form squeezing through the hole to overtake the samurai.

The grimm bowled him over in a flurry of inky black fur, passing him to come to rest on the desert floor. Shinai whirled onto his stomach, gaze following it in shock as the creature sat lowly, wide eyes meeting his again.

It turned and began to glide away with ridiculous speed; a shaggy mass of black shadow rushing over the sand to disappear into the darkness beyond.

The huntsman lay for a moment, breath reentering his lungs, the moment past. He scrambled to his feet, picking Sunsinger up off of the ground, haphazardly taking off after the creature.

Shinai charged after it for only a few moments, boots sliding across the sand to come to a stop, bow and arrow raised high. He stared around the alley he'd found himself in, whirring about, looking into the deep, long shadows that surrounded him.

His mouth gaped slightly, cold dread falling over him. Icy mist escaped him- not going unnoticed, his hands gripping his appropriated weapon tighter. Slowly, he began to creep forwards, looking around himself vigilantly. He sucked in deeply, fighting to force his breath to steady.

And was unaware as two jagged sets of six fingers stretched out from the deep shadows in a small corner, reaching out towards the huntsman; both hands as large as his torso was wide.

He came to a slow stop, eyes inching further open, the hairs sticking up on the back of his neck.

In a black and grey blur, he turned on his heel, loosing his arrow into the darkness.

The grimm shuddered into view, rising to its full height, standing well above the huntsman, body stiff. Its white face rose to the stars in what was almost _shock_, red and gold eyes even wider than before, the creature sucking in a deep breath.

And with uncanny carefulness, it brought its gaze back down to the samurai, boring down into his own. The intake of breath slowly twisted into an almost quiet, deep, yet wailing sound, its massive form leaning forwards over him; hands stretching back out from its amorphous mass on either side.

Shinai ripped himself from his momentary shot of terror to leap backwards, loosing another arrow as he did; and barely dodging the lightning quick closing grasp of the grimm.

This shot buried itself into its throat, sending the creature jolting with the impact. Its form pressed up against the wall behind it- and began to quickly scale it, disappearing over the edge with ridiculous speed.

The samurai let out a growl, leaping up to push off of the wall behind him, darting towards the rooftop after the creature, rolling across the sun-baked surface. Sunsinger drawn tightly, he wheeled around, searching desperately for the grimm.

The creature rushed away from him, a black mass sliding across the rooftops towards the other side of the village, pulling farther and farther away from him.

And closer and closer to the inn.

His eyes widened as the realization washed over him, and he took off at a sprint, leaping across alleys after it- losing ground, the shadow becoming harder and harder to differentiate with the dark rooftops.

It disappeared over the side as it reached the main road, and the inn, melding into the darkness below. It was long gone by the time Shinai leapt from his perch, rolling across the dirt, bow raised. He didn't hesitate before rushing forwards, back into the dark depths of the building's halls.

Ulysses lay against the wall by the entrance- limp, though still breathing softly. Shinai swept past him quietly, ducking low, pressing against the shattered walls of the inn.

He rounded the corner and dashed to the nearest door, pushing it open with care. The samurai leaned through the threshold, staring in.

Oracle lay on the floor, curled into herself, fidgeting slightly, whimpers escaping her. The room was empty otherwise, though, and he backed away, continuing his way down the hall, peeking over the destroyed wall to where Lance was still laying in bed, his sheets soaked in sweat.

The samurai reached for the handle across the hall- and pulled away, the metal ice cold to the touch.

He took a steadying breath, eyes darkening. Like a dark bolt, he shot to his feet and booted the door open, wheeling around the corner with Sunsinger held high- and froze in his tracks.

The grimm stared blankly back at him from its hunched position in the center of the room; and in one massive hand, held Daria's limp body inches off of the ground, head lolling back in its grasp.

It's other hand hovered above her, one long talon extended to press against her throat, pushing in enough for a bead of blood to fall down her skin.

Both grimm and huntsman came to standstills, gazes meeting as time seemed to slow for the samurai, the threat clear. His arrow lowered, form relaxing. He raised his arms abatingly, purple gaze filled with terror as he slowly backed away, the creature's eyes watching him unblinkingly as he went.

Shinai disappeared around the corner, both combatants dead silent. He came to a stop, staring through the wall to where his leader and the beast had been.

The fear began to drain from his expression.

His eyes went stonily still.

A single slow, even breath escaped him.

Poof.

Sunsinger's string wrapped around the grimm's body as Shinai arced backwards, boots planted into its shaggy flesh. With one mighty push, he hefted it over him and towards the wall.

Rubble fell around the trio as the creature went soaring away through dust and debris. It didn't slide or roll as it impacted the earth outside- instead simply landing and melting back into its full height, already beginning its swift path back towards the inn.

A quartet of lightning fast arrows met it, ripping through its inky flesh, drawing a breathy screech from it. Shinai followed the bolts quickly, leaping through the dust that filled the inn to meet the beast halfway. Sunsinger's blade arced through the night air to bury inches deep into the grimm as the samurai fell.

The creature lashed out with a rapid swing of its talons. Shinai slid beneath the attack, drawing the bottom half of Shi En from its sheathe as he did, its jagged blade ripping through its side.

He spun back to his feet, burying the sword handle deep into its back, leaping without missing a beat, pulling the other half of his katana from his belt, plunging it into the grimm's shoulder. The samurai flipped over the creature, arcing out of the path of another pair of swinging claws.

His hands found Sunslinger as he fell, ripping it free before lashing out again with a vicious, deep slash, free hand tearing an arrow from its shaggy hide. He landed in a roll, twirling to a kneeling position to face the stunned grimm.

Staring down the arrow's shaft into the creature's blank, haunting gaze.

Purple eyes burned as he released the bolt.

The steel arrowhead drilled through the human-like mask of the grimm, burying itself up to its fletching, coming to a rest.

At once, the town fell silent, the cacophony of screams fading to nothingness; only the sound of wind peacefully coursing over the desert filling the air. The creature jolted silently, standing still for a moment- and then slowly teetered forwards, melting into a laying position, going limp.

Shinai stared at it with a snarl, huffing in effort, before beginning towards the grimm, eyes locked onto the halves of his sword. He'd only made it a few short feet when it began to violently shudder, shaggy flesh shaking wildly. The samurai grit his teeth, holding Sunsinger at the ready, falling back into a combat stance.

The grimm shot back to a sitting position, cracked bone plate and blank eyes rising back to the shattered moon above, still convulsing. It let out its inward breath of a scream, drawing out longer and longer.

The shadows began to melt away from the village, fading like rising black smoke into the sky; moonlight and electric light alike began to shine down onto Al-Medjek, the desert sands and limestone buildings lightning dramatically.

The creature's gaze fell to meet Shinai's again, the beast coming to eerie stillness, staring him down.

And then it melted back down into a black puddle, its human mask sliding through its form to come to rest against the earth. The grimm's gold and red eyes went dark and smoke began to rise from it, its form dissipating.

Shinai stalked forwards towards the gleaming shards of Shi En in its hide- and stomped down hard onto the bone mask, shattering it under his boots as he reclaimed his blades.

The sound of rubble shifting caught his ear, sending him turning back towards the inn on a swivel, eyes narrowed.

Daria stepped through the hole in the wall, looking around with a heavy, sleep-deprived gaze. Her own eyes widened in shock at the sight of the samurai, turning from him to the disappearing corpse of the grimm behind him.

Her face fell back into exasperation and exhaustion, leaning against the destroyed limestone, one hand rising to the small wound in her throat.

"What the _fuck_." She muttered lowly, letting her head fall.

The tension drained from Shinai, a heavy breath ripping free from him as he began to make his way back towards his leader, re-sheathing the halves of Shi En.

Leaving the corpse of the Nightmare to melt behind him, its black smoke rising into the sky towards the shattered moon.


	6. Chapter 6: The Weight of the Past

**Chapter 6: The Weight of the Past**

* * *

The images flashed over Nash's face, the screen, standing out starkly from the darkness surrounding it, bathing him in pale light. The boy's light blue eyes, ringed in red, were locked onto the television's surface, attention flitting across it. His legs curled further into himself, sweater-clad arms hugging them close; all the while sidling deeper into the rut he had carved into the couch.

_With a flurry of steel, the tanned huntsman's qatar slashed in duel blurs at Phalanx's visor, the glass scratching, but not breaking, under the flurry._

_"And that's game, kiddo!" The man leapt into the air, sending a vicious stab straight towards Phalanx's visor._

Nash recoiled away from the screen, eyes screwing tightly closed. His heart pounded wildly in his chest, breaths coming in short bursts. He grit his teeth together, fingers curling into a tight, half-fist. He forced breath in and out sharply. Slowly, he wrenched his eyes back open, gaze falling back to the TV.

_Lanu Uliuli danced around Phalanx, qatar whirling about him as he deftly dodged the great mech's heavy fists._

"Stop standing still," Nash whispered, slowly relaxing back into his seat. "_Move_."

_"Whatcha gonna do when I carve your mech to shreds? Huh? You ain't-"_

_Daria's boot collided with the side of his face, sending him falling away. She turned to Nash. "Get it together, Aspis."_

_Daria._ A smile slowly claimed the boy's face as he and his partner reunited on the battlefield, staring across at half of Team BLCK. The Vale faithful cheered around them, showering approval down onto the duo, the bright lights and colorful banners of Amity Colosseum bearing down onto the two teams.

"Baby, what are you..."

Nash jolted to attention, head turning on a swivel to the door leading out to the hallway. His mother stood in the threshold, staring in at him with an expression of both sadness and disapproval.

"Oh, baby," She muttered as she stepped into the living room, coming to a stop behind him. She leaned down and pulled him into a hug, her blue robe's exterior well-worn and flattened. "It's past midnight. Why don't you go to bed?"

He didn't answer for a beat. "...Couldn't sleep."

Helen's gaze shifted from him to the television, twisting slightly in derision. "Why are you watching this, hon?"

"I... it... feels good to remember."

"Oh, hon," She sighed, looking away from the fight playing out on the screen. "I never should have let you go to that school... What was I thinking? I never should have trusted you with them." Her eyes turned scornfully to the quartet of huntsmen celebrating on the screen.

She missed Nash's sudden stiffening as she looked away. He slowly turned to her with wide, horrified eyes. ".._.Trust me with them_?" He whispered. "Those were my _teammates_."

"I..." She trailed off uncertainly, eyebrows furrowing. "It- I just meant that they never could have kept you safe-"

Nash pulled himself out of her grip, wheeling around in his seat to face her. "Keep me safe? Those three saved my life over, and over again- they _cared _about me!"

"That's not what I _mean_. I shouldn't have let you be a huntsman in the first place."

"Not let me-" He shot to his feet, tears welling in his eyes as he glared her down. "Being a huntsman has been the one good thing that has happened to me in my life! I- this- it- I would give _anything _to go back there! Anything!" He lifted his arms angrily. "Losing these were half as bad as losing them!"

He moved to speak again, but unable to force words out as his mother stared at him in shock. Finally, he screwed his jaw shut, storming past her towards his room, wiping the streaming tears away from his cheeks.

His door slammed shut, leaving Helen standing alone in the living room, the Vytal Festival whirring on quietly before her.

* * *

The bag landed heavily in the back of the small wagon, the old wood groaning with the impact, Ulysses's motorcycle sagging slightly with the extra weight. Lance wiped his hands off as he turned back towards the town.

"Thank you for this," Daria said, clasping hands with the woman in front of her. "Really, thank you, but this is way too much."

The elderly woman gave her a smile. "That thing has been plaguing this village for weeks. We were days away from packing up what little we have, and moving somewhere else. But you heroes have saved us from that. And you saved us from it. Thank you. _Thank you_."

Shinai stiffened as the woman's gaze turned towards him. After a moment of hesitation, he gave her a small nod, pushing off of his perch against the wall to march towards the wagon.

"We're not heroes," Daria said with a small smile of her own. "But thank you. It was the least we could do, really."

"And this is the least we could do. _Il__a al-liqaa. _I pray that you find what you're looking for."

"I... I hope we do, too... _Hala wallah,_" The two bowed their heads to each other, before turning away. The old woman and those that had gathered with them marched back into their village, the sun on the baked stone buildings seeming to glow a touch brighter than before. Daria nodded to her team. "Alright. Let's get moving. Oracle, map?"

The gunslinger pushed off of her own perch, pulling her bag up with a loud yawn, pushing her hat out of her eyes. "Yeah, yeah..."

Ulysses silently kicked his stand up, idly pushing his bike forwards, the wagon following suit, somewhat awkwardly; the rest of the team joining the march onwards. Slowly, the village began to disappear behind them, and the yawning expanse of dry wastes began to overtake them. The group lapsed into silence, their gazes planted on the road ahead of them.

With the exception of Lance's- whose icy blue eyes never left Shinai. The greatswordsman hesitated for a moment, eyebrows furrowing in a distasteful frown, before drawing himself up evenly with his former leader.

The samurai looked over to his teammate with a look of surprise; surprise that slowly melted into concern as he took in his companion's expression. "...Lance?"

The blonde was silent, looking over his fellow swordsmen. "...Nice going back there with the Nightmare."

"Oh," Shinai said, stiffening slightly. "...Thank you, I suppose."

"Yeah. Really gave it to it, huh?"

"I... yes. I suppose."

"Really kicked its ass, huh?"

The samurai frowned. "What are you doing?"

"Hm? Me? Oh, I'm just trying to figure out where that came from, because you've spent the last_ six months _brooding, and moping, and I'm just trying to figure out why Shinai Kyani decided to show up all of a sudden last night."

"_Lance, _that's not-" Oracle began sharply.

He pointed a finger at her without taking his attention off of his former leader. "Nah, nah, he needs to hear this. We have been carrying your dead weight around for half a year. Half a year! Where was that Kyani at _any_ of the White Fang outposts? Huh? How about the dozen grimm attacks we've fought off? Nah. Nah, you just sit there and call orders like you have any _right_ to call orders. We- namely, the five of us- have worked our asses off to keep each other alive and maybe, just maybe make it to Vacuo in one piece. You, on the other hand, sit and mope, and pretend like you're on this trip for any reason other than the fact that you don't have anywhere else to go. But last night? All of a sudden, you kicked the _shit_ out of that thing like it wasn't _anything_. Where's that guy been since we left Beacon, huh? Where did _he_ come-"

"-Lance that is _enough._"

Daria pushed her way between the two swordsmen, looking up into the blonde's eyes with a dark glower, her words tense and warning. He matched her stare for a moment, bearing down on the significantly smaller warrior.

His blue gaze flit from hers to Shinai's, and he let out a huff, a scowl claiming his face. He turned back forwards and took off at a steadfast march, pulling further and further ahead of the group.

"_What _are ya doing, hon?" Oracle asked, voice thick with exasperation.

"Scouting." He called back, not turning towards his teammates.

Daria looked between the two, her gaze then turning towards the samurai; Shinai watched Lance go with pursed lips, violet eyes soft with apprehension, and a touch of hurt. "You okay?" She asked quietly.

The samurai didn't answer; and, after a pause, slowed his gait, falling towards the back of the group and off to the side. His hand came to rest on Shi En's grip, eyes cast to the ground in troubled thought.

Daria watched the two swordsmen split, face falling. She sent a look around at her team, her teeth gritting together- from the swordsmen, both tense and upset; to Oracle, watching Lance go with a resigned expression; Ulysses, pushing his bike and its attached wagon along, expression lost in its usual distant darkness. Her gaze met Gail's, and the archer gave her a small, comforting smile.

The young leader let out the tense breath she'd been holding, head shaking from side to side.

And the group lapsed back into silence, their gazes locked onto the road ahead of them.

* * *

Rainier's eyes snapped open at the sound of engines racing towards him. He leapt off of his perch in a flurry of white and gold, both the chair he was sat on and the chair he had his feet kicked up on clattering to the floor with the movement.

The wolf marched towards the door-less frame, peering out at the desert surrounding him. A ship careened towards the village; small, sleek, and sharp, painted in drab tans and beiges, nearly invisible against the sands of the wastes.

The young Platina sent a look around himself with a frown- Ceryse was nowhere to be found. The craft came to a stop a few dozen feet from himself, its propellers throwing up a thick cloud of dust.

Rainier walked towards it; one hand raised to fend off the whipping sand whirling around himself. The ship came to rest, its engines quieted, rotors slowing to a halt. The sound of mechanical shifting rang out, the glass panes of its cockpit sliding open.

Without hesitation, Remy leapt from the ship, boots landing with a heavy _'thud' _and a small cloud of dust rising around him. The older wolf marched towards his brother, looking around with a curious golden gaze.

"Where'd you find this?" He asked as he reached the young huntsman.

"Oh, this? I discovered it before I left for..." Rainier cleared his throat, expression clouding momentarily. "Pre-war, I believe."

Remy's eyes flicked towards him at the small interruption. "...Hm. Lots of places like this out in the wastes. Why come here?"

The young wolf spread his arms out with a small smile, slinging his guitar over his shoulder. "..._Listen_..." The duo stood quietly for a moment. "...Pure, unbroken silence. _Bliss_."

Remy grunted in acquiescence. "Fair. Come on, then. We're heading back home."

"Oh? We are? I wasn't aware."

"I could always drag you back. It'll be a nicer trip."

The brothers stared off for a moment, until Rainier looked away with a sigh, sending a wayward glance around the empty village. "Very well, very well. Did Father send you to find me? I suppose he's just _fraught_ with worry."

"Well, he did ask if I knew _where_ you were, if that counts at all."

"Yes, and, on that, how _did_ you track me here?" Remy's eyes dulled in stoniness, locked onto the younger wolf's own. Rainier rolled his eyes, stepping past him. "Yes, yes, _White Wolf_ and all that."

Remy didn't move however, expression softening. "...You know he means well, right?"

"...Oh, _of course_ he does. He just has a brutal, _terribly_ uncomfortable way of showing it."

"He's not great with words. Better than I am, but he says what he means, even if it can be... unempathetic, sometimes. But he says what he says because he cares about you."

Rainier stopped to turn towards him, silver eyebrow raising. "_Why_ are we talking about this?"

"Because I want you to talk to me. About Beacon."

"_About Beac_-" The young Platina cut himself off, looking away in sharp distaste, fine features curling upwards. "...And what, _exactly_, do you want to talk about?"

"Rain... it's just the two of us here."

"You say that like it makes it better."

"I want to know why it hurts so much. Why you can't move on. Because you refuse to move on, but you also refuse to make peace with it. Why?"

"Why?" Rainier turned to storm towards his brother, hands clenching as his guitar fell to the dirt. "You ask _why_? Because I lost _everything_, you daft _idiota,_" He spat sharply. "I was at that bloody school for nine months, and I'm supposed to just forget watching it burn down, hm? Watching my team, my friends, torn to shreds? Because Ironwood and Ozpin and every other person wrapped up in that horror show was so vastly inept that they _let it happen_. I told Ozpin-_ told him_\- that I would not fight a war for him.

And what happened, hm? His war came to us, and we lost. _I _lost. But _no_. My girlfriend, the closest thing to true love I've ever _felt_ for someone, is on the other side of the world. My team? The people who saved my life over, and over again, are gods know where! Assuming they're even still _alive. _But _no_. Move on he says, move on you say. I don't want to move on, because then-" He stuttered to a stop, eyes casting themselves away from his brother's unmoved expression. "...Because than it means that it's over, and I lost. Totally. Completely..."

Rainier trailed off, turning to march away towards Remy's ship, scooping his guitar off of the ground. Before he reached the craft, he slowed to a standstill again, shoulders and head slumping in defeat. He let out a sigh. "...You were right about him, you know? About Ozpin, the kind of man he was. You're always right in the end, aren't you-"

"-Do you _really_ believe that Beacon was Ozpin's fault?" Remy said, voice thick with disapproval. "You've deluded yourself so much to believe that it was?"

"And if it wasn't his fault, then whose was it?" The brothers' golden eyes met. "He brought that hell to my school. He let Ironwood bring his tinmen and guns. He let hundreds of people die. He was the headmaster of Beacon, it was his duty to protect us and protect the city. From where I'm standing, it seems unquestionably like it was his fault."

"You might be the most naïve, _arrogant _brat I've ever known," Remy said lowly, stalking towards his brother. "You blame Ozpin? What about your fight with the samurai? You played right into their hands like a _pawn_, and you blame _Ozpin_?"

"That's-"

"Not fair? Right? Gods, you played their game to the letter. Ozpin could have done better, fine. But he fought a losing battle for _you_. He gave it everything he had for _you_. Ozpin _died_ so that _you _could stand here complaining and insulting the dead. Those people didn't die at Beacon so that you could stand here letting yourself waste away. They died at Beacon so that _you_ could continue the fight. They gave their lives to give _you_ a _chance_. _That's _why Father and I want you to move on. Because there's still a war to be fought. Have some respect for their sacrifices."

The White Wolf brushed past his brother without another word, clearing the distance to his ship quickly, climbing into the cockpit silently. The engines began to whir to life, rotors slowly picking up speed.

Rainier stared after him in shock, unable to move from his position. The young wolf pursed his lips together, gaze falling to the stirred sand below. Finally, he shouldered his guitar and began to follow after his brother, expression cast in darkness, shoulders weighing heavily low.

The Platina made his way up and into the ship, leaving the quiet town behind him; its empty baked stone buildings falling back into silence, filled only with the breeze coming over the dunes around them.

* * *

Lance's gaze shifted over the horizon of the desert surrounding them, blue eyes coloring with concern. He frowned, turning over his shoulder to Oracle. "How long till the next town?"

She blinked, meeting his gaze as she pulled her map free. She gave it a once over, chewing on her toothpick. "Eh... there's an oasis town just due north of here. Maybe a day's walk if we hustle."

The swordsman's eyes never left her, eyebrows furrowing. "...We don't need to be going north."

"And why not?"

He gestured a hand around the huntsmen, looking out at the endless sands. "Because north is heading into the Wasteland."

"Aren't we already in the wastes?" Daria asked with a frown, perking up as she tuned back into the present, previously vacant expression fading.

"Ha!" The swordsman barked. "No. No, this whole kingdom's a big sandy shithole, sure. But we're heading into the _actual _Wasteland. There aren't any cities in there. Just a whole lot of grimm and bones."

Oracle peered over her map at the blond. "...So, we _ain't_ heading north, then."

He nodded. "We've hit the end of this road. We either head out west around the wastes, or head out to the east coast, take a ship the rest of the way to Port Al-Tijarah, head in to Vacuo City from there."

"You say that like you've been here before." Daria said, arms crossing with a frown, dark eyes suspicious.

Lance nodded slightly. "...Came out here once or twice with my mercenary company. Always landed in Tijarah when heading into VC, or from Sacra if we were comin' in from the west."

His leader gave a short nod back, though her gaze didn't leave him, dark with dissatisfaction.

Oracle shrugged. "Denam's due north, north-east from here. It'll take us through the edge of the desert, but we'll hit the coast in 'bout a day. Sound good?"

"Why are we sailing north?" Gail asked quietly, tanned features twisted in horror.

"Because it'll be safer than marching through a desert," Lance shot back, hands crossed behind his head. "It'll-"

"It will _not _be safer!" She spat back. All eyes turned to her in surprise, the group falling silent. The archer, though, simply turned a frustrated glare to the swordsman, hands balled at her sides. "Do you even _know_ what's out there? Grimm don't stop growing unless they're killed or their environments demand they stop growing. The ocean is _thousands_ of kilometers deep. How big do you imagine they get? And that's ignoring the things that don't _need _to get big. I would fight a thousand beowolves before fighting what comes out of the deep sea."

"Alright, archer; how about the giant giraffe that kicks around the wastes? And I mean 'kick' literally, it can destroy cities. What about all sixty friggin' thousand deathstalkers out here? You saw what the Nightmare could do- how about something that's wandering the sands just _aching_ to kill something. Because all of that is out there, and it'll kill us; assuming exposure doesn't get us first, of course. Because aura runs out eventually, and we'll last maybe a day after that before the sun bakes us out of existence. Sailing's the safer option."

"You've never sailed before!"

"But I have been in the desert, and I _know_ how that'll kill us."

"_I am telling you_-" She turned towards Daria, expression pleading. "_Please_\- I almost _died _sailing to Sanus. We'll survive in the desert; if we make good time, we'll reach the oasis before sundown, and we can maybe hire a guide of some kind."

Lance shook his head. "I can't express how _gods awful_ of an idea-"

"-Lance, that's enough," Daria shot towards him with a warning gaze. "We'll head north, find the oasis before dark. Maybe the locals can give us a guide, or some supplies, or just point us in the right direction. We'll be out of the wastes in two days."

The swordsman threw his hands up. "_Have you all_-"

"-Zaffre," All eyes shifted to Ulysses beside his bike, knuckles white as he gripped its handlebars tightly. His dark eyes were locked onto his former partner's, filled with irritation and frustration. "_Enough_."

Lance stared back for a long moment, until he let out a dissatisfied growl. "...Fine. Whatever. Y'all better hope the gods are on our side." He muttered, arms crossing tightly over his chest, the dragon emblazoned on his arm glowering angrily.

Gail watched him in consternation, her own arms crossing, though not nearly as tightly. Daria reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder, squeezing it tightly. The huntresses shared a small smile, before the shorter one nodded, taking off at a brisker pace.

"Come on then," She called. "Let's pick up the slack. I _do _want to be in town by dusk. I'd hate to see what this place turns into at night."

Lance sighed as he complied, gaze shifting from her back to the desert encompassing them. He watched, blue eyes slowly filling with anxiety, as the wind, stronger than it was an hour previous, lifted handfuls of sand off the ground, whirling around the sextet before disappearing into the wastes beyond.


	7. Chapter 7: Taken by Storm

**Chapter 7: Taken by Storm**

* * *

The man crashed into the wall with the cracking of plaster, dust and debris falling around him. His back raked against the rough material as he lifted from the ground, inches and inches higher. He grasped and pulled at the clawed hand tightening around his throat- in vain, the grip only squeezing harder, his gasps turning to pitiful squeaks. Air struggled to enter his lungs, legs kicking idly against the air as his face began to darken.

Vegas brought his snarling face closer to the smaller man's own, leaning in close enough for heavy, angry breaths to brush against the darker man's cheek.

He hissed in through grit teeth, golden eyes boring into the man's grey. "..._I need that maiden,_" His growled lowly, venom dripping off of each word. "It has been _six_. _Weeks_. And I am _running out of patience_."

The smaller criminal raised his hands, nodding profusely as his face continued to change colors. "I- can't- help- you- if- I'm- dead." He managed to squeeze out through the killer's grip.

Gold didn't release for a moment, glaring down into the other man's face. He let out a huff- and let the man fall. He collapsed on impact, hand going to his throat, coughing through the pain. He began to rise to his feet, struggling to regain his breath.

His terrified gaze rose to the golden killer's own, massaging the bruise forming quickly on his throat. He swallowed hard. "...I- I'm sorry, I- I don't have much-"

Vegas bore down onto him. "You have _one _job, you idiot; find the maiden. _Find the maiden. _One job. I expect you to _do it_." He spat.

"I- I know! I know!" The man said, recoiling away from the furious killer. "I'm working on it, I swear! I- I have a lead! It- it's difficult, finding one person in Vacuo! The kingdom's huge, and people don't trust-"

"-What lead?" Vegas cut in lowly, eyebrows furrowing.

The man swallowed, huffing in an attempt to steady his breathing. "I... There was- was a sighting of a woman down south, there- some of the mercenaries I talked to said she was- was a- that the villagers thought she was some sort of desert spirit, a- a djinn! They said she was a djinn!"

"_Get to the point_." Gold raised his arm- and Dragon Fang's glowing tip rose as well, resting against the wall beside the man.

"Magic! They said she could cast magic!" He managed to squawk through his terror. "That's all I've heard! The mercenaries never saw her, just what the villagers told them!"

Vegas shook his head in disbelief, a small laugh escaping him. "You want me to chase down hearsay from some mercenaries, who heard it from backwater savages on the _other side of the kingdom_? Huh? Is that what I'm hearing from you?"

"It's all I have! I swear!" His look of terror faded slightly, swallowing hard. "...That's Platina territory," He added quietly. "If... it's one of the safest places in the kingdom. It... would make sense if she ran there."

The killer didn't answer for a long moment, thoughtful golden gaze turning away. "..._Platina_," He murmured curiously. When he brought his attention back to his informant, his fury flipped to a broad grin. He clapped a hand on the smaller man's shoulder, leaning in. "Follow this lead. See where it goes. If it takes you to Tear's Fall... _let me know_. Our friends in the Fang might be interested."

Vegas drew back and turned on his heel, letting his cloak fall to hide Dragon's Fang. Without another word, he began to march off, golden-wreathed head held high with a bright smile.

The man slumped against the wall with a relieved sigh, breath finally daring to reenter his lungs. His hand rose to his bruised throat, wincing as he turned to watch the killer melt effortlessly out of the alley and back into the busy streets of Vacuo City.

* * *

Gail raised a hand to the air, a frown claiming her face. The wind whipping around her pulled at the offered limb as she twisted and turned it curiously. Grains of sand carried on the breeze collided with her skin; the others that simply grazed her, though, stung as they flew past, disappearing into the dunes beyond. Her attention shifted from her hand as she crested the rise of dust and debris, her warm gaze trailing towards the horizon.

Those eyes widened, and she turned on her heel, feet digging into the sand as she began to tear back the way she had come.

"Sandstorm!" She called as she fell into a slide down the remaining length of the dune.

"I'm sorry?" Daria called back.

"_Sandstorm_!"

Lance's gaze sharpened to deadly seriousness as he snapped to attention. "Aw _shit_." He muttered, taking off at a steadfast pace towards the dune the archer had come from.

"Sandstorm bad, right?" Daria asked, coming up even with him.

"Well... it's not _great_," The duo climbed from the valley below, staring off into the distance beyond; the horizon was nearly black with the storm, blocking far to either side and high into the sun, casting their section of the desert in darkness. The mass of whirling wind and sand steadily made its way towards them, the stiff breeze picking up speed and force around the duo. Lance looked over his shoulder. "Gail, how far do you think that is?"

The archer looked from the trio around her, to her teammates atop the dune. "I... it was maybe a couple of miles out? Four at most."

Lance stared off at the coming storm, jaw worked tightly shut. "...Shit."

"How long do we have?" Daria asked, matching his expression, hands balled into fists at her side.

"...About a couple of minutes," He turned and fell into a slide down the dune, his leader following. He broke into a stiff walk as he reached lower ground, looking to his teammates. "Those things can get up to, like, seventy plus miles an hour. It'll tear us up, it hurts like hell in your eyes and it makes it damn near impossible to breath. We've got literally no time at all until it gets here. We'll use the dune for as much cover as it'll give us, which is next to none, but it's all we've got. Ulysses," The giant looked up, visible eye dark with uncertainty. "Grab hold of your bike if you don't want to lose it. We'll try and keep the cart steady, maybe not lose everything we've got."

"We'll huddle up," Daria said, nodding to her team. "As close against the dune as possible. Try and make a mask to breathe through, and keep your eyes closed. Keep your aura up. If you start getting low, let us know. Gail, you've got the lowest aura reserves, we'll keep you closer to the middle- Ulysses, you've got the biggest, try and keep her covered."

The huntsmen met eyes- Gail nodded to him with a small, supportive smile; the giant stared back for a quiet moment before returning the nod with a small one of his own.

The winds began to pick up faster around the sextet, the sand carried by it thick enough to stand visible against the air. Daria nodded, raising a hand. "We'll wait it out. Come on in. Lance, how long will it last?"

He shook his head as he closed in with the others. "Hard to say; might be a minute, might be an hour. Storms get big in the wastes."

"We'll wait as long as it takes. Ul... sorry about your bike."

The giant looked down to the motorcycle in front of him, a small snarl claiming his features. He let out a growl, but said nothing else, bringing it and the cart it led closer to the group.

Oracle pulled her hat flush against her head, taking a steadying breath. "Alright, y'all, let's-"

The rest of her words were devoured in the roaring of the wind as the storm fell upon them with ridiculous speeds, the sun disappearing from the sky. The winds and sand enveloped them entirely, darkness surrounding the sextet. The winds ripped and pulled at them wildly, swaying the group from side to side; six pairs of boots digging into the sand beneath them, anchoring themselves as best as they could.

Daria grit her teeth as she buried her hands into Lance's coat, dragging herself back to his side as the winds fought to lift her from the sand, her heels threatening to rise into the air. Oracle grasped onto the back of her top even tighter and pulled down, muscles bulging with the effort, face a mask of effort and strain. Shinai similarly gripped onto the gunslinger, narrowed purple gaze looking out into the darkness of the storm as his other hand tightened around the cart.

The cart itself writhed against the force of the storm, the blanket strapped tightly over it ripped away with ease, disappearing into the darkness beyond. The motorcycle ahead of it shook and rattled, thousands of quick *_pings_* ringing against its metal, the black painted onto its body rapidly stripping away, scratches and divots raking into its steel.

Ulysses grit his teeth, one hand smothering Gail's shoulder, the other smothering Lance's, his broad back catching wave after wave of violent, stinging wind and gust of sand crashing against him. The archer sheltered beneath her hulking teammate, one hand wrapped into his coat, wincing as she felt him writhe and flex against the onslaught of the storm. The huntsmen clutched each other tightly, huddled closely together, hands never leaving the nearest point of anchorage.

Until Daria's head raised slightly, the roaring and howling of wind and sand fading into the background.

And the roaring of motors replaced it.

The dune behind them disappeared in an explosion of packed sand, raining around the sextet- a vehicle appeared from the cloud, visible only for a moment before disappearing again into the darkness.

"_MOVE_!" Oracle yelled.

The others acquiesced, splitting from their huddle- just in time, as the vehicle came crashing back towards them, impacting hard with the remains of the sand dune. Its tires bounced wildly as it quickly climbed the hill's shattered remains, disappearing.

"Mother_fucker_!" Lance barked, ripping Iron Maw free from its sheathe, a hand raising in front of his eyes.

Daria turned to him, squinting to make out his figure in the cloud of sand and dust. "What?!"

"Bandits!"

Engines filled their ears again, and two vehicles rushed past the huntsmen, thick treaded tires throwing clouds of sand into the air around them. Oracle let loose a couple of shots after them, though the bullets simply disappeared into the darkness, no indication of them remaining after more than a few feet. "What the hell do we do?!"

"Keep moving!" The greatswordsman called back, wheeling around. "They can't see us ei-"

His words died in his throat as one of the vehicles rushed past him- and a chain fell from it, a crude hook wrapping and snapping closed around his ankle. It sped away, and he went with it, rocking hard against the sandy ground, disappearing further into the storm; Oracle's scream disappearing against the howling gale.

The swordsman let out a yell of frustration, struggling to follow the chain to its source; leaning out of the mostly empty frame of the vehicle was a figure looking back to him. He raised his free hand and clutched tightly. A blue explosion parted the storm for a moment, racking against his captor's face, accompanied by a yelp of pain. The chain shook around him wildly, releasing his captured limb, the buggy disappearing back into the blackness.

He wasted no time scrambling to his feet, taking off back the way they'd come, the vehicle's tire marks disappearing under the storm.

* * *

Oracle stared off the way her teammate had disappeared, guns raising into the storm, twirling on her heel. "Where the hell are they?!"

"Stop standing still!" Shinai spat, hands raised to ward off the sand and wind ripping around him.

The gunslinger wasn't given a chance to argue, as a vehicle raced towards her. She leapt to the side, letting a shot loose, the sound of metal against metal echoing out through the storm. The moment she finished firing, though, one of the bandits leaned out of the buggy, and snatched her gun from her hand, disappearing into the darkness with a satisfied cackle.

"Oh you sonuvabitch!" She spat after him, letting a trio of shots loose the direction they'd disappeared to.

"This is hopeless!" Gail called out, one hand still latched onto Ulysses, an arrow held in tightly in the other. The giant let out a grunt of agreement, narrowed eyes peering into the darkness, the sounds of motors and the storm blurring together.

He jolted to attention, free hand grasping onto her arm. A buggy flew into view, wheels bouncing as it landed- and one of the bandits latched onto the archer's arm, beginning to drag her off of her feet and away.

Ulysses, though wrapped his arm around her waist and dug his boots deep into the sand, jerking Gail to a stop. Her arm wrenched free from the bandit's grasp, the buggy fading quickly from view. She gasped in a breath with wide, shocked eyes, clutching his jacket even tighter.

"She okay?!" Daria called out, turning towards the duo.

"She's fine!" Ulysses growled back, Avenger falling from his grasp, chain spilling from his sleeve.

The leader didn't respond, letting out another swipe of green energy- this time, making contact, ripping a deep divot into the metal of the buggy charging straight towards her. Her eyes widened in shock as its dual beams of light filled her vision.

A shock of red beat the vehicle there, Lance skidding into view. He twirled as he reached her, Iron Maw's greatblade arcing through the sand and wind. It crashed down with immense speed of its own; the massive sword made contact with the hood of the vehicle, the impact crumpling the front with a horrible screeching of metal against metal.

The buggy's momentum came to a screeching halt, the front of smashing into the ground; the second half left the ground entirely, flipping over the duo of huntsmen. Its riders flew from its confines as it crashed roof-first into the sand, sliding away.

Daria was to one of their sides quickly, a vicious kick catching the bandit under the chin, sending him whipping away from her. She twirled quickly as the other rose to his feet, a gun held flush at her face- she pushed its barrel into the air as he fired, the gunshots disappearing into the storm barely audible against the howling of the wind.

The huntress let out a kick to his knee, taking it out from under him, leaving him teetering on one leg. Another kick landed flush against his chest, sending him flying into the air; straight into the falling arc of Lance's sword, crashing him into the sand below.

Before the duo could reunite, another buggy flew between them, a trio of gunshots loosed their way, while another bandit lifted the fallen man off of the ground, taking him back into the midst of the storm.

Daria and Lance's dual grimaces met, the latter shaking his head vigorously.

"Yeah, I get it." She muttered, cautiously beginning to find her way back to the other three.

Oracle shot to attention as the duo reappeared into view. "The hell've you two been?!"

"We'll talk about it later!" Lance barked back, twirling Iron Maw.

A buggy came into view, its bright headlights washing over the huntsmen. Shinai watched it roar towards him, eyes widening- Oracle's shoulder crashed against him, moving him out of the way as she fell into a crouch, lone revolver raised high.

Two shots rang out, and both headlights went dark with the shattering of glass. The vehicle began to steer wildly, veering away from the huntsmen as its driver struggled to bring it back under control.

The samurai grasped onto Oracle's shirt, pulling himself back to a standing base with an appreciative nod.

Lance grit his teeth, looking back to the sheltering forms of Ulysses and Gail. "This fuckin' _sucks_!" He yelled out over the wind.

"Got any plans?!" Oracle added, turning to her leader.

Daria looked between them with a grimace, swallowing hard. "I... I don't-"

The quartet scattered as a buggy raced towards them; and then crashed into the sand wildly, flipping and skidding across the ground, metal shrapnel flying through the air. Finally, it slid to a stop, coming to rest idly.

Its cab was utterly empty.

Daria and Lance shared confused frowns, looking into the frame of the buggy and then around them, searching for its riders. Instead, a scream echoed out above the screeching of the wind- and a bandit came soaring through the storm, crashing hard and awkwardly against the sand, falling limp at their feet.

Lance's gaze shot skywards in surprise- sunlight began to peek through the thick of the storm, lighting up the darkness within bit by bit.

The wind's howling began to quiet, and Daria looked to the others. "I think we're through the worst of it!"

"Where in the _hell_ was the eye of the storm?!" Oracle spat, gun raised towards the sands rushing past them.

"_I don't know_, lady! Probably too small, we've got more important things to worry about!" Lance snapped back.

Daria's gaze turned from them to the storm around them, eyes squinting anxiously into the distance. Amidst the darkness, more visible now, two buggys raced to and fro, whirling around each other wildly, the quartet of lightbeams arcing through the sand.

Suddenly, one of the buggys twirled out of control, spinning through the storm before finally tilting enough to leave the ground, rolling out into the darkness beyond. A scream cut through the air and the last vehicle skid to a stop. As quickly as the scream began, it went silent, plunging the sands back into the howling of the wind- beginning to rapidly abate now, less and less sand filling the air.

The buggy's engine roared back to life, and its headlights idly turned towards the quartet. Slowly, it began to make its way towards them, crossing the haphazard floor of sand with ease.

Ulysses and Gail made their way from their position to the rest of the group, the archer still clutching his jacket tightly. The giant looked to the approaching vehicle with a snarl, grasping Avenger's chain, muscles tensing in anticipation.

The sun broke through the canopy of sand above head, the darkness of the storm finally lifting from the desert surrounding the huntsmen. The last of the sand fell around them, the bulk of the sandstorm disappearing westwards as quickly as it arrived, leaving only a gust of wind wrapping around them.

The sextet spread from their huddle, weapons raised high towards the buggy as it idly came closer and closer; it was small, with two seats and only an empty frame and windshield covering the cab.

It rolled to a stop a few meters ahead of them, Daria's eyes narrowing as the engine died.

A beat of silence passed- before a man stepped from it; he was dark skinned, braided hair pulled into a loose ponytail behind his head. He was dressed in dark, tattered rags and a metallic chestplate, open-toed sandals cladding his feet. The majority of his skin was covered in dark tattoos, swirling gracefully across his form.

The man looked up to the sun beaming high in the sky above him, then to the sandstorm disappearing into the distance as quickly as it had arrived. Finally, he turned down to the huntsmen before him; warm, amber eyes settled onto the sextet, and a broad grin split his bearded face.

"Quite a storm that was!" He called out, voice thick with an eastern Vacuoan accent. "And you all- _you_ look worse for wear! Good work surviving the storm though, your first one is always the worst."

Daria didn't return his warmth, raising her ringblades high. "Who are you? Why did you help us?"

The man jolted to attention. "Oh! Where are my manners?" He bowed his head to them. "You may call me Khepri. As for why I saved you? It is my duty, as a man of the Temple, to protect those travelling through the Wastes." Shinai prked up with wide eyes, staring at Khepri in surprise. The Vacuoan began to make his way back to the buggy, before stopping, looking to the huntsmen with a curious, raised eyebrow. "Well? Are you coming? It's a long walk back to civilization."

He hopped into the cab of the buggy, leaning back with a broad grin; and waited patiently, one hand resting on the steering wheel. Daria relaxed her form, looking to her team. Finally, she sighed, returning her Infinitas to their hooks and began towards the man. She lifted a hand and waved for her team to follow.

"Excellent!" Khepri called out, deep voice jubilant. "I imagine we've much to talk about on the way to Port Denam. Shall we?"


	8. Chapter 8: Finding Solace

**Chapter 8: Finding Solace**

* * *

Rainier was a blur around the mannequin; silver and gold whirring around him as he lashed out with vicious strike after vicious strike. Each impact against the steel and cloth dummy rang out over the villa's courtyard, each blow tearing cloth away, denting and rending steel.

The faunus kicked off with a rocketing cannonshot, twirling in the air. The bullet shattered as it met the dummy, glowing briefly red- before bursting into a ball of flame, encasing the mannequin as Rainier landed hard against the sand below, sliding several feet further. He spun to a crouching position, hard lupine eyes watching the smoke waft away from the dummy; its steel scorched, what remained of its cloth exterior wilting away to fall to the ground below.

His gaze shifted to the side, huffing to catch his breath. "Too slow..." He whispered, eyes searching the horizon beyond the villa's walls. His face slowly changed, twisting from loss into something closer to fury. "_Faster," _He hissed, spittle flying from his lips. "Have to be _faster_."

Like a lightning bolt, he flew back to his feet, a round from his cannon sounding out to propel him back towards the singed mannequin- instead, the shot filled with incendiary Dust ignited against the sand, the small explosion licking at the soles of his feet.

The shockwave blew him off course, sending the wolf tumbling harmlessly past it, rolling to a stop. He laid in the sand for a moment, gaze falling in dejection. He snarled, slamming a fist into the ground furiously. He began to push himself up-

"You're out of practice."

The young wolf pushed himself up to rest on his haunches, irritated gaze shifting to the doors leading inside the villa.

Remy stared back at his younger brother with a coolly cocked eyebrow, arms crossed over his chest. Instead of his usual, casual fatigues, he was dressed in a grey leather top, studded with metal and high-collared; tattoos appearing from his sleeve stretched down his arm to disappear into his fingerless glove. Belts wrapped around his midsection, holding up a duo of knives and his glaive, folded into its more compact, hand-held version; its silversteel barrel and trigger still gleaming under the sun above.

He stepped out into the sandpit, steel-toed boots kicking up small clouds as he walked towards his brother. The White Wolf looked between the disgruntled huntsman and the decimated mannequin beside him. "Sloppy." He reached out expectantly to his crouched brother, offering a hand. Rainier averted his gaze with a quiet sigh, before begrudgingly taking the outstretched limb.

They'd barely grasped hands before Remy pirouetted, lifting Rainier off of the ground as if he'd weighed nothing, and tossed him aside, the younger wolf colliding back down into the ground. He turned his attention angrily to his brother, a snarl twisting his features in indignation-

Remy simply raised his eyebrow again, lifting a hand to gesture for the younger wolf to come towards him.

With a low growl, Rainier obliged, cannon shot echoing out beneath him, gold and silver form blurring towards the White Wolf; the older faunus simply stepped to the side, grasping onto his brother's Wolf Claws, and used his own momentum to send him hurtling away.

The younger wolf landed on his haunches, glowering across at his brother as he turned.

"Sloppy," Remy repeated evenly. "_Slow_."

Rainier growled as he took off back towards the elder Platina, clearing the distance quickly. He skid to a stop on his boot, silversteel claws lashing out in a flurry of kicks- the White Wolf's own metallic limb raised with lightning speed of his own, blocking each of the strikes with smooth ease, put on the back foot with each thrown kick.

Finally, he grasped onto Rainier's Wolf Claws, spinning both faunus in a quick half circle before releasing, letting the younger stumble away. Remy rested his weight on his back foot, idly sliding into a more battle-ready stance. Again, he raised a hand for Rainier to come to him.

The former huntsman bolted forwards, gunshot propelling him, his claws raised high-

Silversteel met silversteel as Remy grasped his brother's canine limb around the ankle. In one smooth motion, he turned, bringing the smaller faunus down with all of the force he could muster, his other hand gripping the young wolf by the throat.

With a small explosion of sand, Rainier crashed down hard into a crater, face twisting in a grimace of pain. Remy stood over him with another expectant eyebrow.

After a moment, the tension drained from the younger Platina's body, his hands raising above his head in acquiescence. The White Wolf gave him a small smirk, reaching his hand up to ruffle his brother's hair. Grasping forearms, Remy helped Rainier to his feet, looking him over.

"You're out of shape." The veteran warrior said with a scoff.

The young wolf looked his thin frame over with a scowl. "I am _not_."

"_Fighting _shape. You look fine- lost a lot of muscle, sure. But you move like you're in molasses."

Rainier stepped away, his nose raised in indignation. "...In my experience, slower fighters win more often than not."

"Sure, but you always fight like it's a race. Hard to win a race when your opponent's _lapping you_."

"You say that as if I've ever beaten you."

"No, but in this state, it's no wonder your samurai beat you."

That immediately darkened the younger Platina's expression, lupine gaze meeting his brother's own warningly. "_Enough_." He muttered, baring his teeth.

Remy shook his head, features lapsing in disappointment, looking away without a word.

The brothers lapsed into silence, attentions falling to the sun beginning to crest overhead, the arid heat washing over them. Finally, Rainier looked down to him, his own fine eyebrow raised. "You're dressed for combat."

Remy grunted. "SOS from a village a few hours out east. Heading out to see what the problem was..."

"...There's an _'and' _or _'but' _coming, I assume?"

"_And _you're coming with me."

Surprise overtook the young faunus, wide eyes blinking owlishly. "I... I- you _just_ said that I was-"

"-Out of fighting shape; and how do you expect to get back into fighting shape? Sitting here, thrashing defenseless mannequins? Besides, you need to get out of the city for a while. It'll do you good. Father'll be back from VC tomorrow; you two need a little more time apart," He turned to leave, reaching the door before stopping. He turned back to his brother, eyebrow raised expectantly. "Well? Are you coming or not?"

He stepped inside of the villa, leaving his brother alone in the sandpit.

Rainier stared at his back quietly for a moment, then let out a sigh, shoulders slumping.

And quietly he followed suit, closing the door softly behind him.

* * *

"So, you just... _wander_? All the time? You ever get bored?"

Khepri let out a small laugh, warm gaze turning down to Oracle beside him in the passenger seat. The buggy bounced and rattled ceaselessly as it crossed the desert dunes, a thick cloud of dust trailing behind them; the septet carving a slow path forwards, the vehicle idling along to allow Ulysses and Shinai beside it to keep pace.

The Vacuoan shook his head as a hand fell from the wheel. "You ask many questions, _mughtarib_."

The gunslinger blinked, pushing her sunglasses down her nose slightly. She turned to Daria sitting in the back seat, visage painted with confusion. "I- _moogtari_\- I don't know what that means." Her leader gave her an uncertain shoulder raise in return.

That drew another small chuckle from Khepri. "It means, loosely... eh... _expatriate_ is the word."

Lance leaned forwards from the back, giving her a surprised, raised eyebrow. "You're _actually_ Vacuoan? I thought you just pretended to be one."

"I mean- my _great-grandad_ was, sure. I sure ain't. Also, you shut it. You're in no position to talk, merc."

"You've still got a little Anglican in you, yet." Khepri shot back, eyes turning back to the wasteland yawning ahead of them.

Daria cocked her head to the side, looking to the redheaded warrior. "I never knew."

Oracle shrugged, leaning back; boots kicking up onto the buggy's dash. "Yeah, great grandad moved to Vale after the war. Grandpa wasn't even born yet, so, y'know."

Lance copied her gesture, nodding contemplatively. "Huh. You learn something new every day."

"Alright," Daria said, attention diverting back to Khepri. "So where are _you_ from?"

He waved a hand at her. "Small town on the outskirts of the wasteland; Amenkno, though I imagine you've never heard of it. My turn; what brings six young, capable warriors out into the heart of the most inhospitable region in the world?"

The trio in the backseat looked to each other for a moment, before Daria cleared her throat. "Heading north, to Vacuo City."

"Vacuo City," Khepri mused quietly, humming. "Long way to walk. Vale, you said?"

"Right. We... we're from Beacon."

The bemusement in the wanderer's face drained slightly. "Ah," He said quietly, looking back to his passengers. "...You have my sympathies. Terrible what happened."

Daria nodded, clearing her throat again. "...Yeah. It's why we're heading north. We need to make sure that Shade's prepared for whatever's coming for them."

"And you'll be the ones to do that?"

The quartet lapsed into silence, freezing slightly at the query. Oracle straightened up, looking out to the horizon. "I think we're pretty uniquely prepared for this kind of situation, 'sidering that we, y'know, already've seen it once."

Khepri nodded. "That's a fair point. Wise point. It's a long walk from Vale to the City, though. I imagine you've seen quite a bit on your path."

"Well, we're all a helluva lot tanner."

He let out a sudden, short laugh. "The desert will do that to you... it'll also dull your senses, drive you mad. _That_ must've been what compelled you to march headlong into the Wasteland with only hopes, dreams, and a handful of vegetables in a cart."

Lance looked sidelong at Daria, sky blue eyes blinking slowly. She gave him a withering side eye of her own. "We were hoping to hit an oasis town before dark, shack up for the night then keep on north with some extra provisions."

Khepri fell silent, eyes unfocusing. He looked back to the expedition's leader with a soft, though sad gaze. "...Bahayya?"

"I- what?"

"Bahayya? Is that where you were heading?" Daria looked to Oracle, and the gunslinger gave him a hesitant, uncertain nod. The Temple warrior's eyes averted from them. "...Bahayya's gone."

"Gone?" Daria asked, shooting to attention. "What do you mean, _gone_?"

"Gone. Overrun by grimm overnight. Nothing could've been done."

The desert went quiet, the six huntsmen looking to each other in various states of dismay. Lance bowed his head, gaze shifting to the outside to Shinai. He gave a small sigh. "Kyani, you're up." The blond warrior muttered before climbing from the buggy, boots clashing down into the sand below.

The swordsmen never gave the other a second look as Shinai passed him silently, climbing into his vacated seat.

Khepri shook his head. "I'm sorry. There was no way you could've known. It's only been a week or two since."

"Well... shit." Oracle muttered.

Daria gave her a small nod in return. "...You're telling me."

Gail looked between her fellow huntresses, dark gaze falling to the buggy's floor in contemplation. After a pause, she rose to her feet, squeezing past Daria and Shinai to follow Lance outside.

He looked up as she drew even with him, an eyebrow raising in confusion. She fought to meet his gaze, hands playing idly in front of her as she cleared her throat. A swift movement broke her hands apart, the offending limbs disappearing behind her. "C- can we?" She asked uncertainly, inclining her head to the side.

He raised his chin in slight befuddlement, eyebrow not dropping. Finally, he gave her a short nod, and the duo began to split away from the buggy and Ulysses.

"Not too far, guys." Daria called, watching them stalk off.

"_Not too far_." Lance called back evenly.

Gail watched as they drew further away from the others, the roar of the buggy's engine and the sound of its wheels churning through the sand drowning their party's chatter out. She looked over to him, dark brown eyes meeting expectant blue. The archer took a deep breath, shoring up her resolve. "I'm... sorry." She said softly, holding his gaze in her own.

"...Sorry?" He asked, voice tinged in confusion.

"I'm sorry that... I pushed so hard to come north. Through the desert."

"Ah. Yeah."

"I... I didn't know."

"Yeah..." He began, words filled with smugness, before trailing off. His expression softened, eyes raising upwards. "...Don't worry about it. If it helps- I hadn't really considered bandits either, so... we're even on that account."

She gave a small laugh, though the elation left her quickly. "I... should've trusted you with this. You'd..." She trailed off, arms crossing behind her back. "You know this place better than any of us do. I should've- _we _should've listened."

"Yeah, well, I get a good idea every once in a while. Not often, but every once in a while," His attention fell back to her, features sympathetic. "...You're pretty fucked up about the ocean, huh?"

"I-" She began with a start. "I... yes. Yes I am."

"Well... we're _gonna_ take a boat once we get to Denam, you know that, right?"

"...Ship."

"Excuse me?"

"It'll be a ship. Probably. Hopefully. Ships are bigger. But... yeah. I know. I'm trying not to think about it too much."

"...I hate you," Her small smile returned at the remark. "...Here; we'll keep close to shore, stay out of the deeps. Whatever fucked you up so bad, I've got no intention of ever meeting."

Her gaze unfocused slightly, visage turning forlorn. "..._Yeah_... me neither... thank you, though."

He watched her quietly, mulling a thought over- and then nudged her with his shoulder, face twisting back into its surefire cockiness. "_Alright, alright,_ enough of this sappy shit. Let's get back before they get any ideas, yeah? 'Cause, no offense, you're not really my type."

Gail raised her smile to meet his own, the edges of her lips curling in slight mischievousness. "None taken... you're not really mine either." The archer turned to walk away without another word, arms still crossed behind her back.

Lance's face didn't change, though his hands went into the air. "Alright, fuck me then!" He called out, getting her turn back to him with her bright smile.

The two turned and began to make their ways back to the buggy, the septet continuing their steady trek eastwards.

* * *

Kyana watched the brilliant stars flicker above, the moon's shattered face slowly disappearing around its mass; its white surface almost marble bright, staring back down at her. A soft breeze trailed through the trees and air, idling rustling the park's greenery, filling the peaceful silence.

She took a deep, serene breath in, amber eyes closing peacefully. The moment carried on quietly- until the sound of pavement crunching under foot joined the light rushing of wind. The teen turned with a cocked, though sincere, half smile; as Nash stepped towards her. His hood was pulled over his head, his hands stuffed into his oversized jacket's pockets; long, uncombed hair hanging in his face.

But his eyes, crystal blue, were locked onto the sky, his expression searching, the boy lost in thought.

"I kinda didn't think you'd come, Nashton." Kyana said, her hands meeting behind her back.

That finally brought his gaze back down to her, features twisting in exasperation. "Stop _calling _me that." He said with a sigh.

Her smile only widened. "Mm... _nope,_" The former huntsman drew up even with her and, after a moment of meeting eyes, the two teens began to follow the winding path forwards, strolling along the perimeter of the park. "...So..." She said after a long moment of silence, looking back up to him. "...How're you feeling?"

He didn't answer for a pause, looking down to his feet. Finally, a tiny smile claimed his face. "...I'm _tired_."

"Heh... yeah... me too. Of what?"

"Just... always. Of everything... I don't really sleep."

"Why not?"

"I..." He trailed off, swallowing hard. "...He's always there when I do."

"Oh... yeah."

"I'm..." He let out a shaky breath, shaking his head side to side slowly. "...I'm so sick of seeing his face."

Kyana let out a short laugh, before raising a hand to her mouth, stifling the rest. "I'm... I'm sorry, tha's not funny."

Nash looked over to her with a small smile, shrugging. "It's... it's okay, Ky. I like your laugh... makes me feel like a kid again."

The teens trailed off back into silence, the cool spring breeze washing over them. "...You know, you're different than before." She said, gaze rising back to the night sky.

His own gaze fell to the path below. "...I know."

"You used to be a whole lot like me. You left and now... I think you're the bravest guy I've ever met."

He turned to her quickly, eyes wide in disbelief. "_What_?"

She simply nodded. "I saw your fight, at the Festival. You might be the strongest guy I've met, too. And then this happened," She reached out and took hold of his arm. "And you came back and, yeah, it's sucked... but look at you. Out here. Didja ever think you'd be back out here?"

"I..." He went quiet, looking around at the quiet, peaceful park. "...No."

"Stupidly strong. Most people would've just... rolled over and, I dunno... _died_. But you're still here. Still kickin'. I think that's very brave."

"_Yeah, well._.." He sniffed, fighting to keep his features static, tears beginning to well in his eyes. "...I learned from the best, y'know?"

"Daria?"

"...And Rain. And Gail. And Lance, and the Cap'n, and O, and U," The tears began to stream down his face, though a bright smile claimed his features. "And Rubes, Weiss, Yang, Blake; Jaune, Nora, Ren, P... _Pyrrha_... yeah... _the best_..." His smile widened. "For a few months, I was a _huntsman_."

"I mean... you were at _Beacon_. I think you don't stop being a huntsman."

He looked down to his pocket, his next words coming quieter, shakier. _"Not with these hands."_

"I think that that's your choice..." They lapsed back into silence, continuing their trek around the paved path. "Hey, Nash?"

"Yeah?"

"If you could have _anything_, what would it be?"

"I..." He looked up to the sky, eyes taking in the moon high above. "...I'd have my team back. DRGN. Yeah... _DRGN_."

"Not your hands?"

His face turned contemplative, attention shifting around the park. "...Y'know the funniest part? I don't miss them nearly as much as I miss my friends. My room. The autoshop. Not nearly as much," Kyana's features slowly fell, a realization dawning across her features, amber gaze locked directly forwards. Nash caught the change in expression, his eyebrows furrowing in concern. "Ky? You okay?"

She blinked herself back to reality, meeting his eyes. "Wha? Oh, yeah. I'm cool. Hey... I... need to be gettin' home before it gets too late, kay?"

"Oh... yeah. Of course." He said, slight dejection trickling into his tone.

"Hey," She nudged his shoulder, the duo coming back to the park's entry. "Thanks for walkin' with me. I'll call ya tomorrow, kay?"

"Course," She pulled him into a hug, before turning towards the street and her path home. He stood still for a long moment, watching her go. "Hey," He called, getting her to stop and turn. His mouth veered into a kind, though small smile. "...Thanks, Ky."

She returned the gesture. "Course, Nash. Catch ya on the flip side!" She turned forwards again and continued her chipper exit from the park, slowly disappearing into the night.

Nash watched her, smile not fading, before turning towards his own path home, gaze rising back to the moon in the sky; and from his perspective, it only looked barely shattered.

* * *

The buggy spluttered, dark clouds pushing out of its tailpipe, the engine, and chassis for that matter, rattling violently. Its passengers began to bounce and shake as the vehicle struggled its way across the sands. Khepri blinked as he looked over the dashboard, features twisting in curiousity.

"She's out." Oracle called from her position outside of the vehicle, pushing her hat back.

"Unfortunate!" The Temple warrior called, letting the buggy idle to a stop. He killed the engine, looking around to his fellow passengers. "It seems our luck has run out. Shall we?" With that, he climbed from the cab, sandals falling lightly into the sand with hardly an impact.

Oracle stepped around as the others, aside from Ulysses, followed the wanderer out. She threw open the hood, though immediately recoiled as a thick plume of smoke rushed from the engine compartment, rising high into the sky. The gunslinger waved it out of her face, pulling her sunglasses off to let them rest on the collar of her shirt.

"Well..." She muttered. It's not _dead _dead. Whattaya wanna do with it?"

Khepri shrugged as he looked around, surveying the desert; its dunes slowly giving way to flatter, solid ground, its vegetation thicker and thicker, and greener and greener. "Leave it. Either bandits or nomads will come and strip it down for parts. Not our problem, however! We should keep moving; we'll land in Denam's not too much farther. Onwards!"

With that, the jovial warrior began forwards, continuing his eastward path. The party slowly followed suit, digging their heels into the dirt and sand after Khepri.

Ulysses watched his companions go from his position at the rear of the group, ever pushing his bike and its cart of rapidly depleting supplies along. His onyx gaze turned around the desert suspiciously, settling on the smoking buggy for a moment.

Ludwig looked down into the engine, massive frame making the vehicle look tiny in comparison. His gaze rose to the younger Ebony, cocking his head to the side. "You could take it. Fill it up with the gas left in your piece of shit bike and leave. Disappear into the desert. Die alone in the wastes. It's all you're good for," He pointed forwards to the rest of Ulysses' party. "It'd be best for them. You'll just hurt them, like you hurt everything. You'll save everyone a lot of heartache-"

"Ul?"

The hulking huntsman turned on his heel, hands gripped into white-knuckled fists. Daria stared up at him, eyes clouded with concern. "You alright?"

His gaze turned from her back to the buggy- completely abandoned. He swung his gaze forwards again, striding past her with a snarl. "Fine." He growled, following after the others.

Daria looked back and forth between him and the smoking buggy in confusion, before finally shaking her head, striding forwards.

Khepri watched as the giant huntsman rejoined the rest of the pack, the gunslinger a step behind. He scratched his chin curiously, amber eyes trailing over the sextet of huntsmen; before finally landing onto Shinai. "Samurai." He called, looking the disheveled warrior over.

Shinai jolted in surprise, turning to the wanderer. "I... yes?"

"I know you... Kyani Shinai. _You_ trained at the Vale Temple."

"I..." The samurai looked to the others, though none were paying attention to the conversation. "..._How_ do you know me?"

"Ha! _You_ were the prodigy of Vale. Whenever Grandmaster Shi En would visit, he would brag, and brag, and _brag_; always speaking so highly of his precious protégé."

"Shi En bragging..." Shinai muttered, gaze falling.

"Oh, yes. He _adored_ you, you know that? Not just your combat ability, though he was proud of that as well; but your respect, your work ethic, your ability to train and teach. You were his greatest pupil, in his own words."

"And you knew my master well, then?" The samurai said, a bite creeping into his voice.

"Oh, no, only in passing. I was just a master when you were coming up in the system; but I knew yours and his story well enough. So, samurai, my question; what _happened_ to you?"

Shinai stuttered in place, nearly losing his footing for a moment. He looked to the older warrior, who had frozen as well, staring back expectantly. "I..." He trailed off, looking around at his companions- Daria and Oracle looking at the duo curiously. "I... I lost-"

"Lost what? Your friends lost as well; they, for the most part, have pulled themselves together. Lost what?"

"I... my sword-"

"Your sword? A fancy length of metal and cloth? That's what you lost-"

Shinai's face twisted in indignation, a snarl creeping across his lips. "It was more than _that_-"

"-No. It wasn't," Khepri looked to the samurai, face falling in sympathy. "...It was a _sword_. It was not your master. It was not what was left of him. Your master doesn't exist inside a _sword_," The wanderer poked a finger into Shinai's chest. "Your master exists inside of _there_. Learn that lesson, friend, and you will never have to lose him again."

The samurai slowed his gait, uncertain violet gaze watching as the veteran warrior continued onwards. A hand clasped onto his shoulder, and Shinai jumped in shock, tuning back into reality. Gail looked up to him with a warm, understanding gaze, offering a small smile. He stared back for a moment, before returning the gesture with a small nod.

"Pick up the pace, my friends!" Khepri called as he crested a small hill, coming to a stop at its zenith, hands resting on his hips.

The six huntsmen below looked to each other as they began to push up the incline towards him, Ulysses lifting his bike with one hand, dragging the cart handily behind him.

Khepri turned as Daria reached him, a bright grin claiming his features. He spread his arms out wide. "Welcome, my friends, back to civilization."

The town below bustled with activity; cars filling its streets, dozens of people crossing around the multitude of homes and business dotting its length. Across the entirety of its eastern edge was a sprawling harbor, dominating the far side of the town. Ships filled its docks, the majority of its activity located along its wooden and steel walkways, and the market pushing against it; salesmen pitching their wares, families travelling its stalls, sailors rushing to and fro- all with a purpose and intent.

The Vacuoan began his way down the hill, watching a seagull fly overhead noisily, face bright with satisfaction. "And _welcome; _to Port Denam!"


	9. Chapter 9: Two Steps Forwards

**Chapter 9: Two Steps Forwards, One Step Back**

* * *

The dark, quiet village came quickly into view as they rounded the high-rising plateau it was nestled against, its buildings raised limestone or carved into the curving cliffside itself; lit only by the moon and stars peeking between the clouds above. The _Pursuer_ flew nearly silently above it, its tip arcing back as the lightning fast ship slowed to a halt, barely visible against the canopy of darkness of the sky.

The White Wolf peered over his window with a furrowed brow glare, lupine gaze staring down at the pitch-black settlement.

"...Where is everyone?" Rainier mused from his seat behind his brother, similarly leaning to take in the village.

Remy grunted in agreement, gaze turning up the plateau's face, following the mess of cables that rose from the desert below; cables that were shorn to pieces, small bursts of sparks lightning up the night air round them. He gestured his head towards it, drawing the younger wolf's attention upwards.

"...Grimm?"

"Only one way to find out." Remy muttered, taking the Pursuer around the village, descending quickly. The brothers piloted away from the settlement, landing in the arid desert surrounding it.

The wolves climbed from the ship, the elder grabbing a duffle bag as he did; twin sets of golden gazes landing on the dark town. "You have a plan?" Rainier asked as they began towards it, Remy fingering his folded glaive at his hip.

"Stay low and get high," Rainier's gait slowed, face falling in exasperation and disbelief, before his brother turned with a deadly serious expression. "_Pup_\- find high ground, but keep your head down. And keep moving."

They veered to the side as they reached the village's walls, Remy pushing up against them. Slowly, he leaned around the corner, watching intently. The younger Platina leapt high, pushing off of the sun-bleached wall to land atop it, similarly staring in.

Remy's eyes narrowed- and something in the dark moved. It pushed from deeper within the settlement towards the entrance. Glowing red and gold eyes washed over his own, and he quickly pulled back out of view.

The brothers locked gazes, understanding passing between them. "_Stay wide_," Remy muttered, unzipping his duffle bag. "Wait for them."

With that, he swept around the corner, tossing the bag a handful of yards into the village, startling the grimm that had stalked into view. Two long legs pulled it forwards; followed by two more; and two more; and two more- thin, spindly, inky black limbs, lined with bone plating. Eight eyes narrowed onto the White Wolf, and its front parted; a mouth filled with needle-like, razor sharp teeth began to chatter loudly, the spider like creature lowering itself further to the ground.

Remy snarled in distaste, pulling Silverfang from its resting place. "Arachne..." He muttered lowly. "I hate arachne."

Rainier watched the warrior and grimm stare off, slowly and silently slinking further along the wall curving around the dark city, eyes narrowing.

The White Wolf took a breath in- and let out a sharp, long whistle. Without a beat of hesitation, more chattering began in the darkness, echoing around the settlement in a choir of communicative noises.

The arachne began to pour out of the alleys lining the main thoroughfare, their chattering reaching a crescendo of noise and intensity. Like a wave, the several dozen strong grimm charged towards him, climbing over and jostling each other out of the way, screeching at the lone warrior.

Remy's gaze fell from them and to the duffle bag they were rapidly approaching. He raised his weapon, finger slowly tightening around the trigger.

Click, boom.

_Boom._

The gunshot rocketed through the night, burying itself into the duffle bag- which immediately went up in a massive fiery cloud, illuminating the darkness in nearly blinding light.

A huge portion of the grimm disappeared in the flames; bits and pieces of black and white raining around the White Wolf, drawing another small sneer of distaste to his features.

His attention shot back to the flames as one of the creatures leapt through the crackling fire, letting out a screech as it flew towards him.

Silverfang twisted in his grasp as he raised it high; its form unfolding into its long shaft and gleaming glaive tip. With lightning quick speed, the weapon fell onto the attacking grimm, cleanly cutting it into two, its halves falling around the veteran warrior.

More arachne poured through the flames, rushing towards the White Wolf; he held his glaive to the side, feet sliding apart, knees lowering. The grimm rushed around him, and Silverfang began to sing through the air; whistling as its razor sharp blade blurred around the wolf.

He masterfully twirled like a top, ripping through each of the arachne as they neared the blade's impressive reach; hand moving over hand with graceful ease. The space around the White Wolf turned into a blender of inky blackness and bone plate, effortlessly tearing through the beasts as more and more raced through the darkness towards him.

Rainier leapt from his viewpoint atop the wall, falling into a roll in front of the flames; a cannon shot followed him down, piercing an arachne with a pained screech, the beast going limp. He twirled back to his feet with a vicious kick, ripping one of the grimm's legs out from under it, and a quick stomp to finish the creature.

He dashed to the side as one of the grimm leapt towards him, white fangs arcing towards his neck- it never made it to the ground as he jumped, planting both feet against its body. With a cannon shot, he pushed off, the beast disappearing into a mist of bits and guts.

Only for the wolf to be jerked to a stop, as a thick jet of rope-like white material latched onto his leg, plucking him through the air effortlessly, sending him corkscrewing. The young Platina crashed into the dirt with a grunt, the wind rushing from his lungs; he wasn't afforded a moment of reprieve, though, as the white rope began to pull him across the ground like a dart. His gaze rose as he tumbled and rolled away from the melee-

The source of the webbing was an arachne suspended on the side of the building; larger than the rest, as large as the _Pursuer _itself, covered profusely in armor. Its abdomen was raised towards him, the thick webbing pulling the former huntsmen back towards it with haste; viscous purple liquid dripped from its fangs, its eight eyes locked onto him.

A shout ripped its way from his lungs as his confusion gave way to realization, features twisting in panic. He moved to rip at the webbing wrapped around Wolf's Claws- and his hand stuck to the thick string, refusing to release. The alpha arachne began to slowly and methodically make its way down the building as he reached its base. The grimm dragged him upwards, even as he writhed and struggled, his clothes sticking to more of the webbing layered across the surface.

"_REMY_!" He screamed, gaze falling, searching frantically for his brother.

The White Wolf twirled without a second thought, Silverfang sent flying through the air, catching an arachne in his own silversteel grip, metallic fingers ripping out of the grimm as if it was papier mache. The glaive's aim was true, cutting through the webbing attached to the suspended faunus, his weight ripping him from the web to crash the dirt below. The alpha grimm let out a furious screech, gaze shifting from the younger to the elder Platina.

Rainier fought to bring himself back to a standing position, doubled over as his hand still stuck steadfastly to his claws. He began to stumble his way back to his brother, the White Wolf slowly doing the same, ripping his way through the rapidly diminishing horde of spiders.

The alpha arachne, though, didn't relent, scuttling down the remaining length of the building, coming level with Rainier. It raced towards him, massive limbs thudding with each rapid step. The young wolf watched its significantly faster approach over his shoulder, eyes wide in terror-

"Rainier! Stop!" Remy barked, ripping a knife from its holster at his side.

"You must be joking!" Rainier spat back.

"_Stop moving_!"

The younger Platina watched the rapidly approaching grimm with a wince- and skid to a stop, the grimm pounding closer and closer, its spittle flying into his back.

The dagger left Remy's hand masterfully, spinning through the air like a silver blur- and glanced off of Rainier's Wolf Claws, tearing the webbing holding it in two.

The young wolf leapt into the air, his leg's plates shifting and ripping through the rest of the web to allow its cannon to emerge, glowing brilliant blue. With a bellowing shot, Rainier soared away from the grimm baring down onto him, his cannon shot crashing into its face- with a small explosion, a rush of ice encasing part of its head, the beast recoiling.

Rainier landed in a roll, looking up as Remy joined him, pulling another blade from his side. The White Wolf barely gave his brother a sideways glance, the younger Platina huffing in fear and exhaustion. "Get up." Remy muttered, slowly lowering into a combat stance as the arachne stumbled back towards him, its four uncovered eyes flitting back and forth cautiously between the two warriors.

"Oh, I apologize that I _almost died_."

"Apology accepted. Next time do better," The elder brother's gaze shot towards the younger's. "...Stop standing still. You have Hunt; use it."

Rainier's scowl rose to Remy. "..._You want Hunt?_ Very well then."

With a whir of movement and rising dust, the young wolf disappeared, dashing around the arachne, leaping off and towards it. He corkscrewed in the air, Wolf's Claws coming crashing down. He connected viciously, a small explosion echoing out from the impact, sending the two combatants apart.

Remy smirked as his brother landed in a slide, yellow eyes glinting brightly. The White Wolf raised his blade suddenly, half turning, driving it deep into the small arachne leaping towards him. Ripping the weapon free, he charged forwards lowly, the alpha struggling to turn towards the younger Platina. Its gaze shifted back towards Remy as he neared it, its pedipalps ending in long claws swiping back at the White Wolf.

He skid to a stop, his dagger raising to parry the attack away, backstepping quickly, his gaze meeting the creature's own. A silver blur leapt into the air on the other side of the grimm; Rainier crashed down onto its back, claws ripping into the plate protecting it.

"Knife!" He called out, balancing himself on a knee.

Remy complied, throwing his blade towards his brother. Rainier caught it by the blade letting out a hiss of pain before shifting it around- and with a yell, he drove it into the grimm's back, digging deep into the bone. He slammed a fist down into the blade's pommel- once, twice- until it was buried to the hilt, drawing a screech of pain from the arachne.

Remy dashed to the side, sliding low across the loose dirt- as his momentum slowed, he leapt into the air, one foot crashing into a building's façade, while his hand ripped Silverfang from its surface. He pushed off, sending the glaive hurtling back towards the grimm.

The silversteel blade buried itself in the beast's side, sending it writhing as a roar escaped its glinting jaws. It began to shake and writhe, loosing Rainier from his perch, the young wolf nearly flying off of its back, clutching the dagger tightly. He dangled off of its side, beginning to pull himself upwards-

Instead, one of the beast's pedipalps crashed hard into him, blade like point driving him down into the dirt, a yelp of pain ripping from his lips. The alpha arachne bore down onto him, venom dripping from its fangs falling onto his chest. It reared back, and then dove downwards, toothy maw arcing towards his throat.

_Schling._

In one lightning fast, swift movement, Remy ripped Silverfang from its side; and pirouetted, bringing it upwards and through the arachne. The glaive tip, gleaming in the firelight, pointed towards the night sky, held steady in the White Wolf's two-handed grip.

The arachne stared down at Rainier for a moment- and then collapsed, its limbs splaying out to the sides, sliding across the dirt. The young Platina grimaced as a copious amount of liquid fell to soak his torso. He pulled himself free as its spindly limbs began to draw inwards, curling under itself.

The Platinas stared down at the slain grimm; Rainier catching his breath with a disgusted scowl, Remy idly returning his weapons to their rightful resting spots.

"...You were right about being slow..." The younger muttered, turning back to the fire raging in the main thoroughfare. "Any more, you think?"

"Doesn't matter," The White Wolf said, joining his brother as they began to march deeper into the town. "Alpha's dead; they'll flee. Smart enough to know when a fight's not worth it. Come on."

Rainier came to a stop as they looked around the pitch-black village, Remy pulling a lantern from a house's porch, lighting the candle inside. The young wolf frowned, eyebrows furrowing. "...Is everyone-"

"-Dead." The elder looked over to him, face falling slightly in sympathy. "...Probably. Everyone else would've left already... another ghost town to add to the list."

The young wolf looked around, swallowing the rising tide of sadness welling inside of him. "...They could've used a huntsman." He whispered under his breath.

Remy stopped in his tracks, looking back to his brother over his shoulder. "...Yeah. They could've. Come on."

Rainier raised his hands, looking around. "_What_? What could _possibly _be of use here?"

"We need to figure out where they came from. Send some men to find anymore, burn out the nest. _Come on_."

The younger faunus watched his brother stalk towards the mountain, lantern in hand. He hesitated, before turning to the side, stepping up the steps to one of the small houses. He peered through the front window, eyes straining against the dark- the interior of the small building was lathered in thick webbing.

His gaze washed over a trio of large bundles of webbing, and flinched away, swallowing hard against the tide of anguish washing over him. He looked back up the thoroughfare, eyes meeting Remy's own.

"Find the nest and go home," The White Wolf called over, his voice tinged heavy in sympathy. "Come on; sooner we get this over with, the better."

* * *

Remy whistled from his position at the foot of the plateau, drawing his brother's attention. The elder Platina's lantern washed over the cave's opening, shining over the fresh wooden beams lining the entrance, supporting the structure winding deep into the cliff's interior.

Rainier stepped up even with him- eyes washing over the webs lining the ground and exterior walls of the cave. The White Wolf raised his lantern high, leaning into the tunnel; the walls were lined thick with webbing as far as the brothers could peer down the mineshaft, far past both lantern light and faunus night vision could stretch.

"_My gods_." Rainier whispered.

"Must've starting digging into the mountain," His brother muttered, nodding in agreement. "...Didn't even know what they were getting into..._ poor bastards."_

The young wolf swallowed hard, gaze falling. "... They could have had huntsmen- they _should_ have had huntsmen, _why didn't they_..." He trailed off, teeth gritting as he forced his emotions away. "Is that it? Can we go now?"

Remy clapped a hand on his shoulder, inclining his head back towards the entrance to the town. "Go on. I'm gonna stop by the city center, find something saying what they were doing. It'll just take minute."

Rainier lingered for a moment, before nodding, turning to make his way back down the steps leading towards the settlement's main thoroughfare. His attention didn't waver, locked steadfastly forwards, teeth grit tightly and hands curled into white-knuckled fists.

He stepped around the dying remains of Remy's makeshift bomb, refusing to look down to the last remnants of the dead arachne, wisping away into black smoke and nothingness.

Through the gate, across the dirt and sands; his gait picking up speed as the _Pursuer _came into view. He slowed next to the ship, looking out across western Vacuo's green, though dry, landscape, bathed in the blue light of the moon.

He swayed, leaning against the ship to support his weight- finally he simply dropped, sliding down into a sitting position. His face fell to bury into his hands- slowly his deep breathing began to hitch, and then twisted into shattered sobbing.

The young wolf turned back up to the night sky, tears welling in his eyes, mouth twisting into a grimace of anger and sadness. His sobbing broke as a frustrated, furious yell ripped its way out of him. He shot back to his feet, turning and striking out with a flurry of punches into the _Pursuer's _side.

And as quickly as it flared, the fight drained from him, and he went limp, slumping against the ship's cool metal.

His gaze fell, anger giving way to quiet defeat, the desert's cool breeze washing over him and the abandoned town.

* * *

"_Mama_! Mama, _look_!"

Daria stepped to the side with a smile as a trio of children charged past her, the one in the front holding a large toad high above his head- the mother in question let out a quick scream of surprise as he thrusted it towards her, before the quartet disappeared amidst the crowd.

"Oh, lords, it feels _good_ to be back in civilization." Oracle muttered, stretching her hands high above her head, a grin similarly claiming her face.

The septet of warriors passed through the busy harbor-side streets of Port Denam; a loud murmur of dozens of conversations echoing around them, the shouts of merchants calling out over the din, selling wares and offering services. Lance stood behind the trio of huntresses; Shinai, Ulysses and his bike bringing up the rear, the cart and its supplies left behind. The samurai was lost in quiet thought, purple gaze distant; while the giant glared around at the busy streets, those daring to meet his frustrated gaze shying away from the group entirely.

"You're telling me," Daria shot back to the redheaded warrior. "This place almost feels like Vale now."

Khepri looked back to the two huntresses with a grin. "I can only imagine your faces when you reach Vacuo; it may look like the peak of humanity by this point."

"You know what I miss?" Lance asked, hands folded behind his head, eyebrow raised. "Bars. _Real _bars. The kinda bars with drinks that have naughty names. They got anything like that here, Templeman?"

"_Templeman_, now that's a new one," The wanderer said. "But perhaps. I don't spend much time in these parts; my duties always take me back to the wastes. You could certainly ask around to find out."

"So I... take it you're not coming with us?" Gail asked, shifting her small smile from a duo of children, pushing their way around the group, back to the elder warrior.

"Unfortunately, no. My duty was to escort you safely from the wastes. That duty is done, and I must sadly return to the sandy hell that I lovingly call home. There will always be stupid kids... and brave adventurers to guide through the sands."

The septet marched to the end of the paved road, giving way to wood and steel docks; ships idly bouncing and swaying against the Sanus Sea's brilliant green waters. Gail slowed as they neared closer and closer to the dock's end and the ocean's spray; her hands curled into her leggings' fabric, eyes filling with dread and apprehension-

Until she backed into the chest of Ulysses, both she and the hulking warrior coming to a stop. She turned up to him, mustering the strength for a small, apologetic smile. "I- aha- I'm sorry, Ul, I-"

"You good?" He grunted out, his dark gaze flatly locked onto her own, eyebrows furrowing.

"I, uh..." She swallowed hard, looking back out to the sea. "I... think I'm okay... thank you."

Ulysses inclined his head back towards the rest of the group, and she nodded, both picking up their paces to catch up to them.

Khepri came to a stop, taking a deep breath of ocean air in. "This is where our paths diverge my friends," He turned back to the huntsmen. "I pray that you have safe and simple travels up the coast; a day's sail will land you in Al-Tijarah and the western highway will take you straight to Vacuo City," He bowed his head. "And I pray that you accomplish your goals; the gods will surely smile down on you."

Daria nodded her head back, offering the older warrior a warm smile. "Thank you, Khepri. For everything. Here, let us-" She reached for her bag at her side, fishing out her wallet- until he placed a hand on her arm, stalling the motion.

"There's no need; I gave aid to those who needed it, because that is what we do," His gaze shifted to Shinai, who summarily turned away. "If you wish to repay me; then accomplish your goal and save the world. That'll be more than enough payment," He straightened up, smiling to the six huntsmen. "Good luck, my friends;_ felan, khodâ hâfez_." He bowed again and turned to leave, a satisfied smile painted across his features.

"I- I'm sorry, I don't know that one." Daria called to him, blinking in surprise.

He stopped, turning over his shoulder to her. "..._Ah_, it's an... _old _language. _Mesan_. There's still much you don't know about your homeland, my friend. And so much left to learn." He waved to her, before merging back into the busy thoroughfare, disappearing into the crowd.

The six huntsmen watched him go for a moment.

"Ah, I'm gonna miss him." Lance said, turning back to the sea.

"Alright!" Oracle called, stepping up to the edge of the dock. "Now... we just need a boat. Easy, right? ...Any ideas?"

"Well..." Daria began, holding her chin contemplatively. "We could... probably try and hire a crew with a ship to take us north. Or... we could find a crew heading to Tijarah anyways and try and book passage with them. Otherwise... we might... rent a boat?"

"Yeah, but then we'll have to pilot it-

"-_Sail_," Gail cut in, looking up quickly. She took a deep breath. "...Technically. You sail a ship."

"So..." Oracle looked the archer over, crossing her arms. "..._You_ know how to sail, right?"

"I... I mean... yes?"

"In that case, it might be easier to find a... what is it, schooner? Schooner's a small boat, right?"

"No, schooners are large. Fishing boat, ferry, tug boat... that's something that I could... technically... theoretically... with a little help... sail."

Lance cocked his head to the side. "...You don't have to. We could find someone that'll take us up the coast."

The gunslinger shook her head. "Sure, but then we'll be workin' on someone else's timetable."

"Lady, it's already taken us, like, nine months to get this far. What's a couple more weeks? If Vacuo's already fucked, then not much we can do about it at this point. Besides, if we stay for a while, I can take the opportunity to go get _absolutely_ shitfaced."

Oracle went pensive at that, emerald gaze turning to the sky. "...Hm... that's not a _bad _idea, hon..."

"I'll do it," All eyes turned to Gail; the archer standing ramrod straight, arms stiff in front of her, teeth clenched tightly. She nodded quickly, taking a breath. "I... if we can get a small ship, I can take us up the coast."

Daria stepped forwards, frowning slightly. "...Like Lance said, we don't have to-"

"-And like he said, we've already taken so long to get here. We shouldn't waste any more time," She looked around at her party, nodding confidently. "...I can do this."

Lance and the other huntresses looked to each other, before Daria nodded. "Alright. Let's go poll the docks, see if there's anyone or anything we can take. Keep an ear out for somewhere we can rent, or maybe buy a ship; or someone that might take us north. Let's move, I wanna have a plan before dark."

The huntsmen began to disperse across the docks, and the greatswordsman placed a hand on Gail's shoulder, giving her a cocked grin. "...You're a tough bitch, you know that?"

She offered a small smile in return. "...If you say so."

He patted her on the back, taking off after Oracle. "Toughest bitch on the nine seas. Don't faint too close to the edge, though!"

Gail hesitated as the others split away; stepping down the docks, with the exceptions of Shinai and Ulysses, who quietly followed behind, towards each of the nearby ships and boats docked, hailing any sailors or captains that would give them the time of day. The archer's gaze shifted towards the horizon, and the endless blue waves stretching as far as she could see; as well as the dark, endless depths waiting beneath the surface.

She took a deep breath, shoring up her resolve, and nodded to herself, turning to follow after Daria; her gaze never leaving the coast long, hands gripping into tight fists.

* * *

Rainier's legs dangled over the edge of the villa's balcony, kicking idly as he stared out at the night sky, idly turning from star to star, face fallen in quiet forlorn. He let out a sigh, dejected gaze turning down to the ocean below, its waves lapping high against the cliff's face, dozens of feet beneath the villa.

A light suddenly shone through the night, illuminating him in a warm glow. He turned over his shoulder to the door behind him;

Leonardo stood in the frame, silhouetted against the light, arms crossed as he stared out at his younger son. He stepped through the threshold, golden gaze shifting from the young wolf to the sky.

He cleared his throat, mulling a thought over. "...They didn't deserve to go like that." He said evenly.

Rainier raised an eyebrow, expression not changing. "...Who does?"

"I..." The eldest Platina sighed, leaning against the doorframe. "...Remyngton said you did well."

"...Is that what he calls good?"

"I'm... it's a difficult life we live. They're difficult things we have to see and deal with... it gets easier," He turned to head back inside- though stalled for a moment. "Try and get some sleep, Rainier."

The young wolf looked away again without another word; after a moment, Leo's head bowed, and he stepped out of view. The light went dark, plunging the faunus back into darkness.

Rainier turned back forwards, tired gaze scanning around the villa and it's surrounding lands. Slowly, he pushed himself to his feet, picking his guitar up as he did. He gave another quiet look to the dark building behind him, before picking up the bag beside him, slinging both it and his guitar over his shoulders.

The young wolf walked along the balcony's railing, rounding towards the side facing Tear's Fall. After a moment, he dropped to the ground below, silently picking his way forwards.

He passed through the villa's gates, keeping a steadfast, though idling pace forwards, winding his way through his city's streets with well-practiced ease.

He passed through the city's gates, and stopped, looking up to the guards perched above, both of whom gave him idle waves. He nodded to the duo, then turned his attention back forwards.

He gave a quiet sigh, and began forwards again, marching out into the green fields that surrounded the city, bathed only in the pale moonlight high above.


	10. Chapter 10: Amidst Raging Seas

**Chapter 10: Amidst Raging Seas**

* * *

"Are we ready?" Daria called. She climbed her way from the dock, leaping over the railing of the boat- using Ulysses' shoulder to balance herself as she did. The huntress dropped down, looking over the small vessel as it rocked against the waves from the impact, sea spray splashing the .

"Sorry?"

Gail peeked her head around the cockpit dominating the center of the sloop, looking to her leader with wide, confused eyes. The shorter huntress nodded to the giant beside her before turning back to the archer. "We ready?"

"Oh- oh, yeah, just about," She quickly brushed past her without a second thought, following along the rigging- line to line, knot to knot studiously, carefully checking over everything, losing herself in her borderline frantic work.

Lance and Oracle dropped into the boat after their leader, watching the archer inspect the ship with razor sharp eyes. The former gave a short laugh, hand reaching up to rub the back of his head. "Man, I _wish _I had that kind of energy right now."

Daria's gaze turned from her teammate to him, face twisting up in distaste. "...Did you two _really_ go out drinking last night?"

"You _betcha_," Oracle shot back with a smile. "_C'mon_, babe, we've been draggin' our asses across this dusty ass kingdom for months. This is the first real city we've been to since, what? Al-Mawi? Cut us some slack here."

Daria stared between the two smiling huntsmen for a long moment- then sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Fine. Whatever. But if you two fall over, we're _not_ coming back for you."

"That's the spirit."

Gail briskly stepped past the trio, never even looking to them. "Watch out for the boom."

"The _wh_-" Lance began, only to drop low as a long, horizontal beam swept over the deck quickly. "-What the hell is that for?"

The Mo'alaun stopped, looking over to him for a moment, mouth opening- then shook her head. "...Nothing. Don't worry about it. Watch out for it, though, it'll hurt." On cue, the boom shot back the other way, again forcing the huntsmen to dodge out of its way.

"I take it back," The greatswordsman muttered. "Sailing _is_ hazardous for your health."

"_Uh huh_," The archer came to a stop, looking around the boat. "...Alright! We're just about ready to hoist," She dashed towards the main mast, taking its sail towards the edge of the boom, tying it down taut. "Lance?"

"Yuh huh?"

"Hoist the mainsail, please? I'm going to go raise the jib and start the engine."

The greatswordsman frowned as she scurried towards the front of the boat, taking the smaller sail in hand. "...You could have just stopped at '_please_'. This the thing?"

"Yuh huh!"

He grunted back as he took a rope in hand, beginning to pull down, the mainsail raising in response. Oracle stepped up to him, giving the working huntsman a once over, pushing her hat back on her head. "Look at you go; seaman Zaffre. Gonna remember that one for a long while."

"_You _shut up," He muttered, stopping as the sail went taut above them. He looked over the rope in hand, a metal clip staring back at him. "Okay, archer, what the hell do I do with this?"

The boat purred as its engine came to life, rocking the waters around them. Gail appeared out of the cockpit, quickly reaching the swordsman's side. "I've got it. Shoo."

She clipped the hook down, giving the sail's rope a testing tug, nodding to herself. The duo of sails flapped noisily against the wind rushing into the port, and Gail dashed to the opposite side, leaving her teammates standing quietly.

"It's not too late to just cross the desert." Daria muttered, watching as the archer continued to zip to and fro; pulling lines, clipping hooks, double and triple checking her work before moving on to something else demanding her attention.

Oracle pushed away from the railing, beginning to idly walk about the deck, looking around at Gail's work. "If Khepri found us out there again, he'd probably just kill us himself."

"Nah, we could take him." Lance shot back, pushing past Ulysses and Shinai idly, following after the gunslinger.

Daria shook her head, looking back to the two dark-haired huntsmen standing at the edge of the deck. "...You guys okay?" Ulysses grunted lowly; his dark, guarded gaze never leaving the distant horizon. Shinai looked from his former teammate back to his current leader, giving her a small, though thin smile. She sighed, giving them a nod, before following after the other members of the team.

"Raising anchor!" Gail called. A moment later, the sloop shuddered, and began forwards, pulling away from the steel and wood docks; then, the engine purred, the sails stopped flapping, puffing out slightly, and the boat started picking up speed. She turned the prow parallel to the coast, letting them pull a few dozen meters into the deep.

She stepped out of the cockpit, looking over the rigging and sails, a content, satisfied smile claiming her face. She looked back to her teammates; and their steadfast, impressed expressions. Her smile turned bashful, a slight blush coloring her cheeks. She cleared her throat, rubbing the back of her neck. "Do... uh, any of you know how to steer?"

There was a moment of silence, before Lance shrugged. "Can't be too hard."

"Awesome- could you- please- keep a hand on the wheel? I need to be out here, uh... the rigging takes a _lot_ of attention- _just_... keep us north. And... not crashing into the coast, or sailing out into open water or- you know what I mean, right?" The swordsman shook his head, starting towards the cock pit. "Oh, and the engine- you'll have the engine. I'll... I suppose I'll let you know when to speed up or slow-"

"Yeah, yeah; I get it, I get it," Lance said, waving a hand as he disappeared around the corner. "You're the captain, Cerulean."

Her smile brightened again, warm eyes glinting brightly. The moment went quickly, as she was summarily jostled back to reality as Oracle threw an arm over her shoulder, hugging her tightly. "_You _look like a little kid who just got told you were getting a dragon for your birthday."

"Well..." Gail said, offering a small side hug back. "It'd be your birthday, too."

"...Oh, yeah, it would be, wouldn't it? Speakin' of, what're we doin' this year?"

"...Saving Vacuo?" The archer shot back to attention, pulling free from the embrace. "_Hold that thought_." She turned and dashed across the ship, bringing her attention back to the ship's rigging, returning to her prior, dutiful trance.

Oracle watched her go, arms crossing over her chest, a wry smile climbing across her face. Daria stepped up to the gunslinger, sharing the expression. The redheaded warrior gave a small, light scoff. "...I feel like a proud mama."

"Heh," Her leader said quietly, watching the archer fervently dash around the sloop, stopping to yell something at Lance, get yelled back at, and then continue. "...Yeah. Me too. Come on, let's go get settled in. We've got a long day ahead of us."

"Aye, aye, that I can do; my head is _killin'_ me."

* * *

_Ding-dong._

Nash jumped in his seat on the couch, wheeling around in surprise.

The sound of a faucet running went quiet from the kitchen. "Was that the doorbell?" Helen called, the commotion of cooking coming to a still.

The young Aspis blinked, rising from his chair, beginning towards the door. "Yeah, I'll-" He hesitated, a shot of cold running through him. He swallowed hard, tightening fingers into a fist. "...I got it."

"...Oh," His mother called, tone hesitant. "...Alright."

Nash took a breath as he reached the door, hand wrapping around the doorknob- and slowly, he pulled it open. The chill night air flowed into the living room, washing over the boy; but there was no one stood on the step. He looked around, eyebrows furrowing in confusion, before his gaze fell- to a large cardboard box sitting on the welcome mat, its side emblazoned with a litany of packaging information.

He- with a considerable amount of effort- worked it up to sit between his arm and his hip, awkwardly pulling it back inside. He set the package down and looked over it. Only a moment passed before a buzz rumbled through his pocket, jolting him in shock. He fished his Scroll out, looking over its illuminated screen.

A message from Kyana played across its surface; _'Hope you like it! Daddy says hi'._

His mother leaned around the threshold to the kitchen, eyebrow raised. "Who was it?"

Nash didn't answer for a second, frowning. "Uh... nothin'. Just a... somethin' from Ky."

"Oh, alright. Dinner will be ready in a few." Helen said, disappearing around the corner again.

Again, the younger Aspis said nothing, gaze falling back to the box. He leaned down and began working the tape away, pulling the package open-;

Inside sat two long, rolled up lengths of paper, a much smaller, unrolled letter; and a mass of styrofoam.

And, as he pried it apart, inside of the styrofoam was a matte grey limb, formed from plastic; multi-jointed and lined with plates. Nash stared into the box in confusion for a long few moments, blue gaze not processing what he was seeing. Slowly, he reached down with a trembling hand, and lifted the letter.

Emblazoned on it in neat, black type-

'_To one Nash Aspis,_

_Sorry it's a little big; it was either that or make it the size of your hand the last time I saw you. This is probably the better solution._

_Also sorry it's only a mock-up; the trade embargo makes it difficult to ship most anything in and out of the kingdom. But, if I know you, you'll do it better than I could anyways._

_Ky-Ky says you still want to fight. You're braver than I. And tougher too. It would be an honor to help you get back to it._

_Don't let anyone know I sent this to you. I'd be in terrible trouble. Not that that has stopped us before, though._

_Good luck, Nash._

_Remember me when you save the world. I want a mention in your post-world saving speech._

_-Dr. Medes Atlea.'_

Tears began to fall into the page, and Nash blinked with the realization. He reached up and wiped the wetness away from his cheeks with his sleeve, taking a deep, _deep _breath. Placing the letter, back, he unfurled one of the scrolls- printed across it was a sketch of the prosthetic, blown up and revealing each, minute facet of its inner mechanisms. Quick, scratchy notes lined the margins of the schematics, idly- and rantingly- going into even more fine detail of the limb.

He dropped it back into the box, gaze finding its way to the limb. Again, he froze, staring down at it; eyes tracing across its pieces, following its lines and creases. His head slowly cocked to the side.

"_I _could _do better,_" He muttered dryly, voice cracking slightly. His breath hitched, and he pulled the box up again, holding it tight to his side. "...I'm gonna go for a walk." He shouted out, rising above the din of the kitchen.

"...Okay," Helen called back. "But be back soon, dinner's almost ready."

Nash said nothing, already heading out the door, closing it quietly behind him. He crossed along the path heading towards the street- and then quickly turned, cutting across the yard briskly, awkwardly half-jogging, trying to keep the box steady.

He rounded the house towards the back, gaze falling onto the small barn sequestered between his home and the forest behind. His gait slowed as he neared it, the steadfast determination in his face fading, replacing instead with hesitation. He stopped, looking from it, back to his brightly lit home, biting his lip.

He took another steadying breath, before continuing his march forwards, clearing the distance to the barn. He set the box down, looking to the glass number pad beside the large door, flipping its covering open. Nash reached towards it- and froze, looking to the remnants of his hand, three fingers outstretched. His teeth grit together, and he wiped the thick layer of dust from the screen. At his touch, it lit up- dim for a moment, then bright.

His hand floated over the numpad, skillfully typing in a code. An engine began to roar to life, and the door started raising, squeaking out noisily, shuddering slightly as it did. He winced at the loud racket, beginning to push the box forwards into the dark recesses of the barn. Dust idly swirled around him, disuse covering every surface in the building with a thick layer of it.

The boy stepped towards the center of the building- bashing his hip against a table as he did- and reached up with a wince. His hand wrapped around a controller suspended from the ceiling, pulling it down towards him. He pushed in its single, large button-

And the barn lit up brightly, industrial lights filling the building with florescent, white light, shining out to the dark night beyond.

Nash stopped, looking around the workshop with rapidly moistening eyes; tables littered with long forgotten tools and projects- some small and done, others left unfinished. The walls were lined floor to ceiling with power tools, weapons, mechanical limbs, and odd contraptions, lacking any rhyme or reason.

And against the far wall, centered with pride, was a duo of large robotic constructs, towering twice as tall as the boy; both were left suspended in positions as if they were flexing muscles. The first was the smaller, though bulkier of the two, its metallic exterior Frankensteined together and partially eaten away with rust. The second was taller and leaner, its frame only slightly wider than Nash's own, its surface painted in dull, flaking reds and golds.

A bright smile, filled with warm nostalgia, crossed the mechanic's face as he finished taking in his long undisturbed workshop- that smile quickly faded as his gaze fell onto the current centerpiece of the building.

An object suspended off the floor by chains, covered in an old, yellowing blanket. His expression dropped as he stared at it, a deep, dark pit forming in his stomach, his mind melting from that barn to that far off place, surrounded by fire and screams-

_A blade pushing through a visor._

_A golden sword piercing a leg._

_Molten hot gold ripping through the midsection, through the arm._

_A flash of metal as the blade cleaved the head in two, too easily, too easily, too close, shouldn't have-_

Nash wrenched his eyes tightly shut, looking away from the suspended object. He slowly forced his rapid, panicked breathing into more controlled, deep breaths, fighting away the terror swelling within him.

Painfully lethargically, the sudden rush of adrenaline and panic began to ebb steadied, and he finally opened his eyes. He looked down to the table beside him; and his fingers digging into its surface, beginning to splinter the wood. He raised the offending limb up with furrowed brows- watching as familiar, and long unused, red aura flashed over it.

Clenching his hand into a fist, gave the workshop one last look over- pointedly avoiding the tarp- then looked back to the box beside him. He hefted it up onto the table, walking it across until he'd reached the end and an old, though massive, computer monitor, covered in dust. He wiped across the screen and activated it. It leisurely began to whir to life, a black screen with a progress bar inching its way to completion meeting him.

He reached into the box and began fishing its contents out- placing the letter beneath the monitor, the prosthetic on one side, and the scrolls on the other, letting them roll out.

He looked back and forth between the duo of schematics and the plastic limb itself, frowning.

"_I can do this_," He whispered, shoring up his resolve. "...I can _do _this..." He pulled the schematics closer as his computer finally opened to its desktop- and he was greeted with the image of a young, blonde boy holding a mechanical contraption aloft with pride, and a blonde man in a white overcoat, laughing brightly with pride of his own. He stared at the picture for a moment, lingering on the laughing man as his eyes softened. He nodded to himself, jaw going tight; his expression shifting into one of determination. "..._Back to the fight_..."

* * *

The door creaked open; the warm, bright light of the desert sun shining in slowly to illuminate more and more of the room within. A golden blade entered first into the darkened building, its molten edge lighting the darkness where it swayed.

After a moment, Dragon's Fang was followed by Vegas, his thick cloak falling around himself, expression twisted in wariness. The killer's eyes, golden and flat, scanned around the shadowed interior, flitting across every surface, peering into every corner, observing every object. Satisfied, he slunk inside, closing the door quietly behind him, leaving only his blade and eyes glowing amongst the black.

_Click;_ the light turned on, bathing the small apartment in dim, flickering light. Vegas let out a sigh as the tension left him, scowl replacing the coldness that had dominated his features. He pulled his blade from his arm, dropping it onto the dirty counter, its surface laden with empty bottles and embedded knives.

He let his cloak fall to the ground, stepping over it to make his way to the fridge. The killer pulled out a bottle, tearing its cap off before putting it to his lips. He drank greedily from it, devouring the liquid within with a growl of satisfaction. Vegas stepped away, marching across the apartment to the doorway on the opposite wall. He opened it and stepped through, looking around the dingy bedroom. Again satisfied with its vacancy, he made his way back to the building's main room, falling to sit in the rickety chair that sat in its center. He let out a content sigh, his head falling back.

He'd only sat for a moment before every hair on his body stood on end.

His eyes snapped open, muscles coiling, instincts screaming at him. He shot to his feet, sending the chair sprawling, dashing towards where Dragon's Fang was waiting. He nearly made it before-

_Clickclickclickclick._

The chattering of sharp teeth, bone against bone. The air in the apartment chilled, and Vegas froze in place, one hand resting on his sword. Golden eyes turned to the shadows yawning from the other side of the room.

Slowly, the creature emerged, chattering noisily; an arrowhead-like appendage pushed through the darkness first, attached to a thin red tentacle. More of the limbs joined the first- two, three, five- before the creature itself appeared. Small, the size of a basketball; its bulbous form black, white plates across its body matching white teeth chattering against each other from around the spindly tentacles. Inside its globular body, though, was a glowing orange light, pulsating lightly.

The grimm came to a halt halfway to the killer, floating in place idly. Vegas swallowed hard, drawing his hand from his blade. He slowly walked towards it, golden gaze filled with trepidation, his breathing turning shallow. He opened his mouth to speak-

_"Oh, dear Vegas,"_ The grimm said, voice wavering like speaking through water. _"You have _no reason _to fear me..."_

The killer's teeth grit together tightly, his form rising out of its defensive position. "...Your Grace." He muttered, head bowed lowly.

Salem hummed through the Seer, its form shifting closer towards him. _"You've been away for quite some time, dear Vegas... how goes your hunt?"_

The killer took a moment, mustering his resolve, chin rising back into the air. "... I... I haven't found her. _Yet..._ _Your Grace_."

_"Mm... disappointing. Tell me, Vegas; what _exactly _is keeping you? I was certain that you were one of the most skilled hunters I have. I trust that you are using all of your skills I this endeavor."_

"_Of_ course," He hissed, voice taut with urgency. "It's- Vacuo is a huge kingdom. My... _informants_ are working, but... trying to hunt someone here is like-"

_"Finding a needle in a haystack? Do you know the best way to do that, Vegas?"_

"...I-"

"Burn the haystack," The words hung over the quiet apartment for a moment, before Salem continued. _"...There are some here who doubt your competency. Some who doubt your health_... some who doubt your loyalty. _I do hope you prove them wrong, Vegas... _Find the Maiden._ You're running out of time, dear Vegas. We near the hour of our triumph in Mistral; I do trust that you'll be fully prepared for our arrival soon."_

Vegas sucked in a breath. "O- _of course_, Your Grace. I'll find her."

_"Good. Do not let us down, Vegas. We are so close to achieving our goals... we cannot falter now. I eagerly await your next update."_

"_Cinder_-" The killer spat quickly, stepping towards the orb. "How is she?" He stared at the Seer expectantly- but the orange glow inside the grimm had already dimmed. Wordlessly, chattering its fangs against each other, it began to float back into the darkness. The sound of a window raising echoed out through the quiet building; the rush of wind blowing in; the room warmed again, and the Seer was gone.

He stared after it for a long moment-

And let out a frustrated scream, picking the chair beside him off of the ground, and hurtling it at the wall; sending it shattering into a thousand pieces.

* * *

Ulysses's gaze stared out across the horizon as he rocked against the waves, the Lucidean Ocean stretching as far as the eye could see; deep, warm blue in color; the sun beginning to set, bathing the sky in gorgeous oranges and purples. The warm, tropical breeze washed over him, the sound of the sails loosely flapping behind him; the others, discussing quietly; Gail busily keeping track of a thousand things, dashing around the sloop with purpose.

He took a deep breath in, and the warm air in his nose turned bitingly frigid. When he opened his eyes, the warm light of Vacuo turned to a winter pale; the warm breeze to a stinging winter gust; the warm blues of the Lucidean to the pale, dark Mantlean Sea.

Snow began to fall, and his heart dropped, and he was twelve again.

"_So here you are."_

The berserker screwed his eyes shut at the familiar voice, goading him, prodding him, his hands balling into tight fists.

"..._Too much of a coward to even be there when it happened."_

His face twisted into a snarl; fingernails began to dig into his palms.

"_You ran. Like you always do. She told me she was glad. Didn't want to see you."_

Smoke began to curl off of his form, his chest beginning to alight with fire, his mind going dark, thoughts getting lost in a sea of black and red and rage, his breathing increasing, blood pulsing, heart pounding, teeth baring; he was twelve, _twelve_, _why_-

A hand on his shoulder.

"...Ulysses?"

The cold disappeared, the voice whisked away on a tropical breeze, deep and condescending laughter fading into nothing. His eyes opened back to the Lucidean.

He turned- to Gail, her warm, worried eyes meeting his own- two pools of black, slowly draining back to normal. "Is... everything alright?" She asked, voice soft and ever melodic.

He wiped a bloody palm onto his coat, giving her a non-committal grunt back, gaze turning towards the horizon again. The archer watched him for a moment- and then leaned forwards against the railing, planting her feet solidly onto the planks below. The movement drew his attention back towards her, one eyebrow cocking up in irritation and confusion.

She looked down into the deep blue seas beneath them, teeth gritting together hard. She took a steadying breath. "...It's... _terrifying_," She whispered. "Do you... _know _what all is down there?" She looked up to him, the giant giving her a slow head shake back. "...Neither do I. I know enough, though... and it makes my heart _pound_\- and now I have to look away, because I think I'm having a panic attack,"

Gail brought her gaze back up, following Ulysses's prior gaze towards the horizon. "...But _that's_ beautiful... I love the sea, you know? I... I spent so many years on it. But now, it... it _terrifies_ me," She looked up to him with a small, supportive smile. "...Being out here feels like... meeting an old loved one and facing my worst fears at the same time... it does make me feel really... _really_ brave though," She placed a hand on his forearm, giving it a small squeeze. "...I can only imagine what it's like doing that every day. It makes _you_ look very brave, though- and now I need to go make sure we still have the wind, hold that thought."

The archer disappeared again, after another set of rigging to adjust, sails to turn, a brief shout to Lance echoing out over the otherwise quiet waves. Ulysses watched her go, swallowing hard. He turned back out to the horizon- and focused onto a long, dark abyss out amidst the deep blue, like a crevice down into the depths of the sea.

And then the abyss began to move towards them.

Quickly.

He screwed his eyes shut with a snarl, shaking his head furiously, trying to force the vision to disappear. He opened his eyes, and the darkness was gone. He took a deep, steadying breath-

_Whoosh_.

The boat shook, rocking and waving. All six of the warriors shot to attention, looking to one another with matching frowns. Lance leaned out of the cockpit, looking to the berserker. "...That was you, right?"

_Whoosh._

The ship rose several feet off of the water, dropping back with a deafening smack, and an blast of sea spray soaking the sloop.

Gail froze, eyes wide in horror.

The other huntsmen drew their weapons, looking around. "_What the hell is i._.." Oracle began- and trailed off as a dark shape appeared off of their starboard bow.

The surf broke- and two, massive bone white antlers pocked up from the sea. Those antlers rose higher and higher, giving way to a massive reptilian skull with hateful yellow and red eyes. That rose- and rose, and rose, and rose, the huntsmen's gazes locked onto it as it continued higher and higher and higher into the sky, towering over the sloop by a dozen, two dozen, three dozen, four dozen meters.

It stared down at them, red fins falling down its back shaking, thin, clawed limbs reaching out to the huntsmen- and the throat of its serpentine, black form began to glow golden, its herculean mouth yawning open slightly; the same glow pulsating out through its mouth.

Lance's eyes widened as he stared up at the Sea Feilong, the King of the Seas, the gargantuan grimm taking a breath in.

His face fell. _"_Oh_, you have got to be fu-"_

The grimm let out a roar- and from its mouth, a beam of lightning, larger than the boat was wide, fired out like a laser, arcing towards them with ridiculous speed. Gail cranked the wheel hard to the side, the sloop awkwardly turning on a dime- barely dodging the blast, letting it slam into the water with the force of a mac truck, massive waves raising, and nearly flipping the boat.

The Feilong reared itself up, drawing more of its body out of the ocean- and dove towards them.


	11. Chapter 11: The Dragon

**Chapter 11: The Dragon**

* * *

_Boom_.

A brilliant blue explosion rocked the Sea Feilong, stalling the towering grimm's dive. It recoiled away, massive skull turning out over the ocean. Lance loaded another shot into Iron Maw, slightly guilty expression finding its way to his companions. "...I wanna take this opportunity to begin my three-step apology."

Daria held her ringblades high, looking between the swordsman and the recovering dragon. "Tell me why and make it quick."

"I might have tested the universe. And now the universe is getting back at me."

"_Heads up_!" Oracle called, whistling out to draw the six huntsmen's attention back. The Feilong's eyes- red, gold, and hateful- drew back to the warriors, its long body coiling under itself in the choppy, dark waters below. It snapped to attention- and dove under the surface, dashing like a bullet towards the sloop.

"Hang on!" Gail screamed out, as the engine roared to life. The boat began to dash forwards, its bow rising with the sudden burst of momentum. The crashing of waves heralded the dragon exploding out from the sea on the portside of the sloop. With ridiculous speed, the beast dove back down, bringing its hulking form down onto the stern of the ship.

The world went sideways as the boat was dragged to an increasingly vertical position, the planks of the deck splintering with the heavy impact. As they careened upwards, four of the warriors jammed blades into the deck of the sloop- Daria catching Oracle's hand before the gunslinger could fall into the dark waters below.

Ulysses, though- his eyes washing over the situation with a dawning realization- simply pushed heavy boots into the prow of the ship- and then leapt off, hurtling down to the surf. The impact stalled the momentum of the sloop's yawning flip, and sent him straight into the serpentine body coiled around the boat. The giant impacted hard with the Feilong, Avenger coming down onto the black scales of the dragon- it let loose a roar from the depths of the sea, and uncoiled from the sloop, slinking away quickly-

With Ulysses still attached, thick fingers digging in and holding onto the inky scales of the beast as it dragged him underwater.

The sloop came crashing back down to the surface with a deafening _smack_, sending the remaining huntsmen sprawling across the deck. Gail was the first to her feet, scrambling her way towards the railing. "_Ulysses_!" She screamed, her eyes wide in shock.

Daria was to her side a moment later, following her gaze. "Where is he? …_Gail_! Where is he?!"

"The- the _dragon, _it- it pulled him-"

The Mistrali huntress grasped her friend by the arm sternly, pulling her away. "Go call for help- Shinai! Help her. Lance, Oracle, we've gotta find Ul."

Gail hesitantly stepped away, falling in line with the samurai on their way back to the cockpit. The greatswordsman and the gunslinger joined their leader at the edge of the ship, staring out over the endless blue. "Alright," Oracle said. "So, what in the hell do we do?"

"I..." Daria began, before faltering. "I- I don't know, we have to- find Ulysses, that's- that's the goal."

Lance leaned over the railing, shaking his head. "How the _fuck_ are we supposed to-"

The ocean blasted upwards with an explosion of sea spray, the black form of the Feilong stretching out high into the sky. The beast's ascent was accompanied by violent, though triumphant roaring- on the grimm's side was the form of Ulysses, still clinging to its inky flesh with one hand, Avenger repeatedly coming down against the grimm.

The dragon let out a roar of pain at the impact, shuddering as it writhed wildly against its rider, trying desperately to lose the giant. Lance took a step back, flicking out Iron Maw, its blue light glowing. "I'm comin', bud!" He called, before leaping-

The cannon fired out with a raucous bang, and the blond warrior careened away from the sloop in a blur of red. He crashed into the grimm, his blade digging deep enough into the dragon's scales to find purchase, the impact sending the Feilong writhing and bucking in pain.

"What are you _doing_?!" Daria screamed out, raising her blades high. "_What is he doing?!_"

Oracle shook her head with a shrug, loading her revolvers, gold energy washing over her. "_Boys_." She raised her guns and began unloading into the beast, glowing shots arcing over the surf.

Lance flung himself upwards, perching atop the wide blade of his sword, hand resting against the thrashing beast. "Ulysses!" The hulking huntsman looked down to him, with eyes of solid black, his features baring no sign of recognition for the swordsman. "_Dude_! Get off of that thing!"

The giant proceeded by turning back up towards the dragon's head- its own eyes turning down to the two huntsmen atop it- and braced himself, before vaulting upwards, scaling meters closer to the beast's skull. It let out a roar of anger, and then dove back down towards the water, giving Lance only a moment to shout- "_Dude_!"- before they disappeared back into the depths.

Daria looked up as Shinai joined her, wrapping his hand tightly around Shi En's handle. "Communications are down." He said lowly, tensing gaze washing the beast drag the huntsmen under.

She let out a growl of frustration, turning to where Oracle had strafed while shooting, her revolvers raised. "...Alright, _alright_... just... just let me think for a second..." She dropped her head, face twisting into a thoughtful grimace. "...Okay, _okay_... we need them both back down here. Gail- try and find something, anything that might let someone know we're here. Oracle, Shinai, we'll... I don't know, try and bring it closer so we can get those idiots back.

The archer nodded, turning to dash back into the cockpit, leaving the remaining trio standing at the railing. Oracle raised her gun, looking over the bullets remaining in its cylinder. "...Might wanna cover your ears."

She fired out with a thunderous blast, the energy around her tunneling into the gun and into the bullet, as a supernova-like shot ripped through the surface of the water, barreling towards the writhing dragon like a glowing torpedo.

_Boom._

The shot exploded off of the side of the Feilong, its roar of pain echoing through the water, ripples emanating from it across the ocean's surface. The creature rolled around itself, before breaching the surface again, eyes searching frenetically for the source of the shot; red and gold gaze finally finding the sloop again.

Lance gasped in a long breath, hands desperately gripping onto the handle of Iron Maw. His face twisted from relieved to furious, shifting to press his boots against the dragon's black scales, his greatsword shifting back into its cannon form. "Ul!" He barked, looking to the water-logged berserker barely hanging onto the dragon's neck, gasping for air himself. "We are gettin' _off_ this fuckin' ride!"

The dragon turned down towards him, letting out a furious growl, lightning glowing in its mouth again- before it could fire, Gail dashed from the cockpit and raised a gun high- higher than the Feilong, and fired. With a hiss, the flare bolted up into the evening sky, glowing brilliantly red- upwards, and upwards, high above the cliffs.

The dragon's gaze shot from the offending swordsman to the glowing shot arcing past its head, reflexively recoiling away from it. The flare lingered in the sky for a moment, before going dark, falling back down to the sea harmlessly.

As the Feilong began to turn its gaze back to its two riders- Lance fired, and Ulysses bashed Avenger against the dragon's side, heavy boots pushing hard off of it.

The two impacts rocked the great beast, a shrill roar of agony piercing the air as it dove away from the huntsmen. As it disappeared under the waves, it dashed frantically back from where it had come, its dark form bolting off towards the darkening horizon.

Lance crashed hard against the planks of the sloop, bouncing as he did, Iron Maw falling from his grasp. Ulysses fell short of the boat- his hand lashing out to grasp onto the metal railing at the last moment, a growl rumbling from his throat as he slowly pulled himself upwards, clearing the railing to fall to the deck below.

"...Fuckin' _ow_..." Lance muttered, shifting onto his hands and knees with a pained grumble.

Oracle quickly strode over between the duo, kneeling low, rolling her shoulder out as smoke rose off of it. "You're a buncha idiots."

"Yeah, yeah..." The swordsman muttered, dragging Iron Maw back towards him.

Shinai's gaze fell to the recovering huntsmen; to Oracle, kneeling by their sides, checking on them; Gail and Daria, their attentions turning to the Feilong dashing through the waves; first away from them, then wheeling back around, its red fins rising from the wake, quickly clearing the distance it had made.

His teeth grit together, eyes going hard, before turning on his heel, marching back towards the trio on the ground. "New plan. _Oracle_," He said, voice firm. "Are they alright?"

"Yeah, they're fine, what's-"

"I need you and Lance on the cliff," He said, pointing towards the mountains bordering them off their portside bow. "Take shots at it, wear it down. Carmine, pace yourself, don't let yourself burn through all of your aura. _Lance_-" The swordsman looked up to him, eyebrows furrowing in distaste. "...Stay wide, don't clump up. Your shots can rock it- when it tries to fire lightning, keep its aim off target."

The two swordsmen stared off for a moment- the blond apprehensive, the samurai stalwart. Lance finally broke the contact, pulling himself to his feet. "Come on, O, I'll get us up there."

"_Promises, promises_." She muttered, stepping towards him. He wrapped an arm around her, his gaze meeting Shinai's once more- before he turned and leapt, a cannon shot propelling the duo high up the cliffside, quickly scaling the rest of the way.

Shinai turned back to Ulysses, the hulking warrior huffing, barely cognizant of the samurai before him. Shinai stepped forwards, placing a hand on his chest. "Ulysses- _focus_. Do you hear me?" The giant shook his head for a moment, his breathing centering- before giving a single nod, half-black eyes settling onto his former leader. "...Keep hitting it. Don't stop moving. Don't let it get comfortable. Understood?" Ulysses nodded again with a grunt. "Good. Stay at the prow of the ship. Wait for it to come to us."

Daria and Gail stared out at the quickly approaching grimm, the former turning to Shinai. "What about us?"

The samurai stared around, looking between them and the approaching dragon. He took a steadying breath, swallowing hard. "..._Alright_. Daria- get to the cockpit, get the engine running and get us moving again. Gail, stay on the deck, do not stop firing. Distract it, hurt it, do whatever you need to. I... I don't know if we can kill it, so our best bet is reaching somebody to come help. Buy time, hope someone saw your flare," He nodded to himself, taking another deep breath. "Go. We don't have much time."

The expedition's leader nodded turning to march back into the cockpit, her hands beginning to fly across the control board, fighting to reignite the stalled engine. Gail and Shinai took up stalwart positions at the railing; the archer knocking an arrow; the samurai gripping his sword's handle in a white-knuckle grip, jaw clenching tightly.

Gail took a breath, raising her bow to the stars above, firing her arrow high into the sky, a small explosion going off as it reached its apex.

As if on cue, the Feilong ripped itself out of the water, drawing its gargantuan form high above the sloop, serpentine mouth opening wide in a roar, its claws coming up to grasp the edge of the sloop tightly- metal rending and wood shattering under its grasp. Before it could act, though, a blue explosion rocked against its head, the beast recoiling hard from the impact, shifting away from the boat. A gauntlet of golden shots followed, pelting its scales and bone plates, every shot forcing it to flinch away.

It drew its gaze up to the cliffs, where the duo were crouched low, reloading their weapons. The dragon looked between them and the boat below, a roar of frustration bellowing out of its body-

Avenger crashed hard into its side, serpentine form bending under the blow, the beast's eyes going wide, while Ulysses drew his flail back towards himself. Shinai looked to the archer out of the corner of his eye. "Get its attention."

Gail nodded, her hand going to her quiver, quickly drawing a trio of white arrows, raising her weapon back towards the dragon. One after another, she loosed the bolts in rapid fire fashion; as they flew, their white light illuminated brightly, gale force winds whipping wildly around them. The trio of missiles raced past the beast, cleaving through the Feilong's form, carving inches deep divots across its scales.

The creature let out an furious, though agonized roar, drawing itself back to its full height, gaze falling to the sloop. The samurai nodded. "Eye."

"_Can do_." She whispered, her hand rapidly finding a light blue arrow. The dragon roared down at the duo, its claws shouting out to latch onto the boat's railing again, moving to pull the sloop down into the depths. The archer dug her heels in, bracing herself against the swiftly inverting deck, and fired.

The arrow flew true, carving through the air to bury itself into the beast's eye- and explode into a wicked nest of ice shards, jutting wildly out from the Feilong's socket. A harrowed shriek split the air as the dragon recoiled from the blow, its massive frame falling backwards through the water, sending colossal waves rocking towards the sloop. The Feilong spun in its place, head lowering down to the wake below, preparing to dive under.

Golden shots rang out down from the cliff, clattering against its scales before it could submerge, the grimm flinching away with each impact; until a blue explosion rang out against it, throwing the beast meters through the water, displacing gallons of the sea as it did.

The dragon's head fell under, leaving only a section of its back floating above the waves, red fins bared to the night air, and it went still. The ocean went quiet, leaving only the sound of waves lapping against the boat and sloop.

Finally, Shinai let out a tense breath, his rigid muscles relaxing, jaw unclenching. A relieved laugh escaped from the Mo'alauan archer. her gaze meet the samurai's; and he gave her a small smile of his own in return, hand falling from Shi En's sheathe.

"Holy _shit_!" Lance called from the cliff, Iron Maw raised high. "Hell _yeah_! Take that, you Udon noodle motherfucker!" Oracle let out a laugh and a cheer beside him, both huntsmen's faces splitting with beaming grins.

The waves under the ship went white with foam, as its engine roared back to life, ripples floating out through the water, and Daria's cackling, triumphant laughter echoed out over it. "She lives!" She called, stepping out through the cockpit door. "It's actually dead? Nice _work_, everyone!"

Gail nodded, turning to her leader with her bright smile, stepping forwards to pull the shorter huntress into a relieved embrace. Shinai watched them reunite for a moment, smile softening- before his gaze turned back to the water.

And the gently writhing black scales poking out of it.

The sound of flesh tearing began to echo out through the night air; the red fins of the dragon quivered frantically, shaking from side to side; and slowly, they began to elongate, pushing outward from the black mass of the dragon, the tearing sound growing louder and louder, drowning out the sounds of celebration, all eyes turning back to the beast.

The fins shook with more intensity, straining against themselves for a moment- before they flew outwards with a spray of blood and the rending of flesh.

A pair of massive red wings spread out wide over the dark waters, large enough to eclipse the horizon and stars above, magnitudes larger than the sloop. Whoosh. They beat down hard against the air, pushing the water out from under them.

Whoosh, whoosh. The beats began to come quicker, picking up with velocity, as the quartet on the boat backed away from the edge, drawing their weapons back into their hands.

"Oh you've _got _to be kidding me." Daria whispered, and the Feilong ripped itself free from the ocean.

The waves rocked out over the sloop, as the massive grimm began to rise quickly from the depths, its body wiggling along with the beating of its massive wings. More and more of the serpentine beast rose from the surf, towering higher and higher over the huntsmen.

The Feilong let out a roar, and a thunderous beam of electricity burst from its jaws, barreling towards the sloop below. The blast arced over their heads, ripping through the main mast with ease, sending it crashing down- narrowly missing Shinai and Ulysses as they dodged away from it, the beam smashing into the deck before slinking down into the dark waters below.

The beast took flight, pulling the last length of its body out of the sea, taking flight up and away from the sloop towards the cliffs beyond. Lance and Oracle shot to their feet in dual panics as the dragon raced towards them- the gunslinger lashing out quickly with both cylinders, burying her bullets harmlessly into its skull-plate, the swordsman firing out a cannon shot that went wide, sailing past the dragon.

Its throat lit up with brilliant gold again, and the ray of lightning fired out towards them, the beast's roar echoing out atop the storm-like crackling. The blast carved up the side of the cliffs, tearing through stone with ease, and over the edge, splitting between the two warriors as they quickly scattered.

Shinai hissed in a breath as the quartet watched the beast disappear out of view, charging back over the mainland. "Ulysses!" He barked. "Get up there, quick. Daria, get back to the wheel, get us moving. Gail, get ready to fire," He looked over the other huntsmen. "_Go_!"

Daria and Gail nodded, the former rushing back to the cockpit, the latter, pulling another trio of arrows, holding them at the ready. Ulysses back up to the starboard bow- and stormed back across the deck, leaping high above, and passed the waves, his dark form smashing into the cliffside, digging fingers and boots into the stone. He began to scale upwards, dragging himself quickly towards the apex.

Oracle and Lance turned and watched as the Feilong raced passed them toward the horizon, before beginning to turn, one eyed gaze locking back onto the two warriors as it rushed back towards them. The gunslinger quickly began to reload her revolvers, hissing in a breath of irritation. "Lance, hon, I'm runnin' out of ideas here."

He loaded a fresh bullet into his gun, sharing her grimace. "Yeah, and I'm runnin' out of _bullets_!" He spat back, raising Iron Maw and fired- going wide as the Feilong tilted away from them, letting the blue shot fly harmlessly under it.

The grimm's wings shot out ahead of it, its body falling back into a vertical position as it suddenly came to a stop, mighty wings beating at the air as its gaze turned towards the swordsman- baring the golden energy already glowing vividly in its throat.

"_Oh shit_." He whispered.

The dragon reared back and let loose with a wicked blast of lightning, racing towards the flat-footed warrior. He watched the golden, crackling ray near closer and closer, blue eyes widening in shock, a bullet falling from his hand.

Oracle dove, throwing her body into his with all of her weight, bodily throwing the swordsman aside-

And putting herself directly into the beam of lightning.

The blast enveloped her, hurling her meters away, carrying her along its path until the beam dissipated, leaving her crashing down into the rock and dirt limply; her clothes torn, ragged, and burned, heavy smoke rising off of her body. She twitched and spasmed, electricity coursing over her. Red aura flickered across her form, before disappearing.

Lance brought his gaze up, eyes rising to her for a moment, breath leaving his lungs, his heart skipping a beat as his mind began to process what it was witnessing.

The gunslinger laid there, motionless; her chest far, _far_ too still.

"..._Oracle_," He said quietly, shakenly rising to his feet. "Oracle!" He took off at a sprint, eyes widening with realization and horror. "ORACLE!"

The dragon roared, jerking forwards as it propelled itself towards the charging swordsman and fallen gunslinger, its fangs bared wide.

"_ORACLE_!" He screamed, dropping Iron Maw, attention flitting between the huntress and the dragon. "ORACLE, _GET UP_!"

The Feilong dove towards them-

Ulysses met it in the air- a leaping blur of black, smoke rising from his body like a bonfire, a cracking roar ripping itself free from his chest. He smashed into the side of the Feilong's head, tearing it out of the sky and down towards the cliff below.

Both huntsman and grimm collided hard with the ground; dirt and stone ripping free from the impact, flying wildly around them. Ulysses dug boots deep into the earth, eyes wide as his face twisted with boundless rage, his scream still echoing out through the night air. His hands raised one after another, mighty blows cracking down onto the grimm's bone-plating, cracks spiderwebbing across the dragon's skull.

Lance fell into a slide as he reached Oracle, lifting her limp form into his lap. "O, talk to me, _O_, talk to me..." The gunslinger didn't respond, didn't move, didn't _breathe_. His expression of horror faded until only realization remained, eyebrows furrowing, his breath coming quicker and quicker. "_Come on, talk to me, O, talk to me_..." He pleaded through clenched teeth, tears welling in his eyes, his throat tightening. He schooled his expression back into a neutral one, setting her back down onto the ground. "Come on!" He hissed, pressing his hands to her chest- and began pushing. "_Come on!_"

He leaned down and pressed his lips against hers, blowing, before returning to his frantic pushing. "You do _not _get to die on me, you stupid fucking woman! Come on!" Another breath of air, pushing into her lungs. Tears began to fall onto her unmoving face, the swordsman's white knuckle grip pushing against her chest. "..._Please_, O- don't go, don't go, don't go," A breath, a set of pushes. "Please, please, _please_. _I can't lose you_."

He leaned down again- and the barest, lightest hint of breath washed over his lips.

Oracle's chest began to rise in short, shallow gasps, her form still limp and unmoving. Lance let out a sobbing laugh, picking the gunslinger up into his lap again, wrapping her in a tight, desperate hug, burying his head into her shoulder, tears soaking into the ruined fabric of her shirt.

Ulysses attention shifted at the swordsman's jubilance, wide eyes turning to the duo, his face twisting with shock- and the Feilong lashed out, fangs enveloping the bottom half of the huntsman, ripping him off of his feet. The dragon surged back to life, raising its head and body from the cliff, frenziedly shaking the captured warrior around- side to side, up and down- before finally whipping its head to the away , sending him hurtling down the cliffside.

It shook its head again, unfocused eye sharpening with clarity, spindly arms pushing itself up. It dragged its massive body to the edge of the cliff, and flung itself away, great wings beginning to pound against the breeze, taking back off into the evening sky, a victorious roar echoing out around itself.

Daria leaned out of the cockpit as the beast came back into view, frowning. "Course they didn't kill it, that would've been too easy. It's comin' back around!" The dragon turned its attention back to the sloop, lightning spilling from its jaws as it flew back towards the other trio- letting out a vicious blast as it did, drawing it along the ocean like a crop-duster as it soared overhead. "_Hold on_!" Daria barked, turning the wheel hard, moving to pull the sloop out of the line of fire-

Before she could finish the turn, though, it whipped past them, its beam of electricity catching the stern at the corner, carving a small section of the boat away.

"We're taking on water! Stay left side, keep the left side of the stern up!" Gail called, her bow lowering. She looked to Shinai, their gazes meeting. "...I've got a... really bad idea... catch me if I fall." She flicked her bow out into its great form, burying its blade into the planks below, drawing an elongated, glowing red arrow from her quiver.

The Feilong turned back towards the cliffs, and Oracle and Lance atop them, its fangs baring in fury. It let out a roar, its wings flapping hard- and dove towards them like a bullet, its throat beginning to glow golden-

_Thwip. Boom._

A massive arrow collided with its side, throwing its course off, the serpentine beast starting to roll away from the duo-

And a deep blue arrow collided with a small explosion of light of its own. Gail dug her heels into the planks of the ship, her gaze flitting to her blue copy beside her. They both turned upwards to the beast, its hateful gaze turning to the archers.

She grimaced as its wings began flapping again, moving away from the gunslinger and swordsman below it entirely, leaving the fallen warriors be- its gullet glowed brilliantly, lightning beginning to arc from its mouth.

The archer's face twisted from a grimace to one of determination, teeth gritting together; and all along the portside bow of the ship, blue archers began to appear- two, three, four, six, a dozen. They nocked their bows, while the grimm's mouth began to widen, energy pooling amidst the gaping maw-

Ulysses leapt with a roar, his shoulder driving into the beast with all the force the berserking warrior could muster- it was enough, the Feilong's head turning out to the horizon from the impact as its lightning blast fired, arcing out harmlessly towards the water.

Gail loosed her shot. The first arrow found its mark against the beast, small explosion rocking it.

The other twelve followed immediately after- blue arrows raining down from the sky, most of the volley finding their marks against the serpentine grimm; a brilliant array of shattering light filled the dusk sky, battering the dragon away with each collision.

The archer huffed in exhaustion, sweat beginning to pour down her face. She readied her great bow again, great arrow pulling back against the string- even as her arm trembled, struggling to draw the mighty weapon. Shinai looked to her with a frown, eyebrows furrowing. Daria peered through the cockpit's window, similarly filled with concern. "_Gail_-"

"I've got it," She whispered, dark eyes hard with determination. "_I've got it_."

_Thwip._

The cavalcade of arrows flew from the sloop, raining down around the beast with a shower of deep blue, the force and fury of the impacts ripping the grimm from the sky, the small explosives ripping through its wings until they no longer held the dragon aloft. The beast fell around Lance and Oracle, the swordsman jolting as its serpentine form narrowly missed the duo, winding its way across the cliff. He let out a snarl as he lifted the gunslinger from the ground, throwing her over his shoulder in a fireman's carry, pushing himself to his feet.

Gail stared up with hazy eyes at the fallen grimm, her hair stuck to her sweat soaked skin. She raised her stooped body back to a standing base, shifting her legs apart again, a hand taking up the string of Sunsinger. She began to draw back again, her body shaking with the effort- before her eyes rolled into the back of her head.

Her body went limp, falling lifelessly to the side, careening over the side, falling to the surf below.

"_GAIL_!" Daria screamed, dashing from the cockpit after her.

_Poof_.

Shinai crashed hard against the surface of the water, wrapping an arm around the unconscious archer tightly- his other hand lashed out as they fell, the bottom half of Shi En burying into the side of the sloop up to the hilt. A shout of pain ripped free from his lips, his body caught between their stopped momentum, and the momentum of the boat driving forwards through the waves.

He wrenched his eyes tightly shut, a grimace of concentration claiming his face.

_Poof_. Both huntsmen rolled hard against the decks of the sloop, Gail falling away from the samurai limply. Shinai came to a stop with a hiss of pain, pushing his water-logged self to his hands and knees, shaking excess seawater from his head.

Daria dashed to Gail, sliding to her knees. "Gail- Gail,_ speak to me_"

There was a beat of silence, before the archer let out a quiet groan, face twisting in pain, though her eyes remained closed. "...I'm good." She whispered.

The Mistrali let out a sigh of relief, wrapping her partner's arm over her shoulder, heaving them both to their feet. "Shinai- you alright?"

The samurai gave her a shallow, unconcerned nod, slowly pushing himself to a standing base, swaying slightly with a wince. "Her?"

"Still alive," Daria muttered, dragging the archer to the cockpit. "I'll keep an eye on her- you get the rest of those idiots down here."

* * *

"Ul!" Lance barked, wheeling around, trying to catch a glimpse of the huntsman around the fallen form of the Feilong. "_Ul_! We gotta _go_, buddy!" He shifted Oracle across his shoulders, wincing as he took off at a jog towards the edge of the cliff. "Come on, dude! …_Gods_, how the hell do I get..."

The sound of something dragging across the grass hissed out over the cliffs, the hairs on the back of his neck rose on end, and he came to a stop, hand tightening around Iron Maw's handle.

The swordsman spun on his heel, turning back towards the Feilong- his gaze meeting its one eyed red and gold, its cracked and shattered plated head turned directly towards him. Its clawed hands slowly pushed itself upwards, the beast rising above the warriors again. Lance hissed in a breath, staring the beast down, legs sliding and bending as he took up a combat stance again. "Just fuckin' _die_, already." He spat.

The Feilong roared, and lunged towards him, massive jaws raised wide open, fangs bared; Lance raised his greatsword towards it, digging his heels into the dirt-

Ulysses charged across the cliffs towards them with a roar; leaping, and bashing against the dragon's skull, cutting the beast's descent off at the last moment, both combatants hurtling away from Lance and Oracle. The berserking huntsman landed hard, pushing the dragon's skull back into the dirt with a two handed blow. He lashed out again, massive fist burying into its jaw.

Suddenly, his gaze snapped back to the duo, his lips turning up in a snarl, body trembling with rage and exertion. "_GO!_" He managed to howl through his rage, before bringing his attention back to the Feilong, both hands pressing down against it, holding it flush to the cliff- its slithering form writhing behind it wildly.

Lance backed the rest of the way to the edge, eyes wide, and nodding. "...I'm comin' back, Ul- hold tight!" He took a moment, breathing in and out as he readied himself; and leapt, free falling back toward the ocean's surface, Iron Maw coming up as he did so- a few meters above the surf, he thrust forwards, digging his blade's hook deep into the cliffside, carving through the stone.

His and Oracle's weight carried him further and further down, his boots digging into the cliff to further stall their momentum, a scowl crossing his face with the effort- the duo jerked to a stop just above the sea, the waves reaching up to lap against his heels.

"_Lance_!" Daria called, engine coming to life, the sloop beginning to arc towards the duo.

The swordsman peered over his shoulder as they approached, taking a moment to brace himself, and with one great push, he pried himself free from the cliff, leaping back with all his might towards the sloop.

He crashed hard against the planks, letting out a yelp of pain, brilliant blue aura cracking against his form; Oracle rolled limply from his grip, coming to a stop just before Daria. Lance immediately sprung to his hands and knees, finding his way to her side, pulling the gunslinger back into his lap, the tension draining from his body, a relieved breath crossing his lips.

"_Oh my gods_..." Daria whispered, her hand going to her mouth in shock.

Shinai crouched low beside them, purple eyes wide. "Is she-"

"-Alive," Lance nodded, eyes wrenching shut as he held her close to him. "...So is it, and Ulysses is still up there." His gaze turned back up to the cliff.

* * *

Ulysses turned back to where his partner had been, a satisfied grunt leaving him, before he turned his attention back to the dragon, snarl reclaiming his face. He raised his hands high, preparing to bring them back down. The Feilong's clawed hands lashed out first, catching hold of the huntsman's legs. The beast lunged, throwing its immense weight forwards as it hurled Ulysses away, sending him rolling across the clifftop.

The giant came to a stop, laying limply for a moment with a pained growl, before moving to push himself to his feet, black gaze rising to meet the grimm's own. The dragon raised itself upwards, serpentine form rising high above the warrior, glaring him down; its torn and tattered wings lay limply around the winding body beast.

The creature trembled, jaws opening wide, and it let out a ear-shattering roar, bearing down on the berserker. Ulysses dug his boots into the dirt, letting out a furious bellow of his own- and as the dragon's gaping mouth began to glow golden, he charged forwards, bonfire-like smoke curling off of his body. The dragon reared back, lightning spilling out of its maw; Ulysses picked up his speed, preparing to lunge directly towards the beast.

Neither made it.

The cliffs exploded with the sound of gunfire, a flurry of bullets, dozens and dozens per second rained down around the duo, huge shells ripping through the black mass of the beast, drawing a short pained scream from it. Ulysses crouched low, an arm raised against the onslaught falling around him, dual pools of black raising towards the sky in confusion, eyebrows furrowing.

The huntsman's gaze found its way onto a half-dozen airships soaring in from further inland- wooden in design, only slightly larger than the sloop. Small hot-air balloons burned atop the ships, and propellors whirred behind, carrying them forwards.

Brilliant orange flags flapped noisily in the breeze behind them- emblazoned proudly on the banners was the three swords of the Vacuoan sigil. As the ships spread out around the cliff, two machine guns on either side of the crafts unleashed a downpour of bullets onto the dragon- the creature's form, again rising into the air, was pushed back down to the cliff, its head lolling brokenly to the side.

The beast seized, its serpentine coils thrashing- and then its death throes went still, gold and red gaze falling to stare down at Ulysses vacantly.

One of the ships lowered down beside the huntsman and grimm, its occupant throwing open a swinging door and stepping out, a spear held aloft; the man was dressed sparingly, clad in loose whites and warm leathers, a helmet held under his arm. His skin was Vacuoan dark, tattoos swirling across his arms; dark hair pulled into long, flowing braids. He looked from the grimm, over to Ulysses- and the giant stiffened, head lowering with a growl.

The man held his hand up abatingly; lowered his spear, and spoke in an Eastern Vacuoan accent. "Easy, _easy_\- I don't mean any harm. Easy there, _amalaqah_. We're all soldiers here. Are you a huntsman?" Ulysses' gaze shot from him to the dragon, though said nothing else. "Alright, fair enough-"

"Captain!" A voice called from one of the other ships, hovering over the sea. "We've got more down here! They're in pretty rough shape!"

The man looked back to Ulysses, an eyebrow raising. "They yours?" The giant grunted, form slowly relaxing, leaning back distrustfully from the man. The smoke curling off of him began to thin, the whites of his eyes slowly returning. "Alright, then, friend. Let's get you and yours to safety, then; shall we?"

* * *

Lance hefted Oracle's limp form up, holding her tight to himself as the airship lowered down to the ocean. The man inside extended his arms. "Let me take her." The swordsman stalled for a moment, face falling in hesitation- and then handed her off, quickly climbing into the airship after them. He turned and bent low, grabbing onto Gail's arm and taking the barely conscious huntress from Daria-

The archer groaned as she was hefted up into the ship, her head falling back, face twisting with a wince. "...Did we win?" She muttered.

Lance and Daria exchanged glances as she climbed in after them. "...Yeah, I think we did." She said, eyes flitting over to Oracle.

"...Oh... good."

The swordsman gave his leader an affirming nod, and a tight smile. "...She's still kicking."

Two of the soldiers gently nudged the others away from the gunslinger as they placed her down onto a mat, setting down a motley of supplies beside her; the woman looking up to them, warm visage comforting. "...We'll keep her stable until we can get her to a hospital. She'll make it." She said softly, voice the familiar lilting Western Vacuoan accent.

Lance stared down at them for a moment, swallowing hard as his gaze washed over his teammate. "...Thanks," He managed to whisper. A moment later, his gaze turned back to the entrance and he extended his arm, making Shinai jolt in surprise. The two swordsmen locked eyes for a beat of silence, before the samurai took the extended limb, letting the larger warrior help him up into the airship. Lance looked him up and down, eyebrow raised. "You alright, Kyani?"

"I... I'm good. Thank you."

"...Good," The duo stood silently for a moment, before the greatswordsman gave him a small sigh. "...Nice work tonight."

Shinai said nothing, gaze falling away from the blond warrior. The pilot of the airship looked back to them from his position at the front of the deck, peering through dark shaded glasses. "You kids might want to take a seat, the ride may be bumpy."

After a moment, the trio of still standing huntsmen acquiesced to the request- Daria sitting by the barely conscious Gail; Lance by the unconscious Oracle, the soldiers placing a blanket over her and an oxygen mask over her face, the crew falling into silence. The flames of the blimp bellowed louder, the propellors whirred quicker, and the airship began to ascend, rocketing up quickly towards the cliff. It slowed down again as they reached its apex. The still conscious huntsmen looked over the Vacuoan coast, and the cliffs that rose alongside it- cliffs that were now strewn with the dissipating serpentine corpse of the massive Sea Feilong, smoke slowly curling off of its form. Around the beast was a half dozen soldiers; some of them around its head, making sure it stayed dead, others walking along its body, looking the grimm up and down.

Ulysses looked up from his position amidst the hubbub as the ship neared, and gave the Captain waiting beside him a nod, quietly stepping towards the approaching ship. Lance and Daria threw the gate open, extending hands to the giant, and helped pull him up into the ship- Daria stumbling back as he set his boots down, shaking her hand out.

Lance, though, didn't release Ulysses's hand- instead, squeezing it tighter, his jaw clenching, expression twisting in gratitude- and the swordsman pulled his partner into a tight hug, bumping his back with a fist. The berserker jolted at the touch, looking down to the smaller warrior with a surprised look.

When his gaze rose again, they met those angry, dark eyes set deep within an angry, dark face, twisted in scorn and disapproval. Ulysses stifled a growl, and reached up to pat Lance's shoulder, brusquely separating the two. The swordsman nodded with a slightly disappointed, though understanding expression, making his way back to where Oracle had been laid down, sitting by her side.

Daria watched the two partners separate with a sad smile, as the airships began to rise, one after another, turning away from the coast and back towards the mainland.

The other soldier inhabiting their ship not currently seeing to the gunslinger looked back to the other huntsmen, leaning back. "... So what are you all doing out here?" He asked, arms crossing over his chest.

The party's leader sighed, copying his gesture as she retook her own seat. "...You know …trying to sail up to Al-Tijarah."

"Tijarah? What've you six got going on up there that's worth all this? If you don't mind me asking, of course."

Daria looked to her team, giving a slight shrug. "Road to Vacuo City. We're Vale- we came from Beacon. Just... trying to make it to Shade."

The two soldiers stopped, looking to each other. The woman raised an eyebrow. "...I'm alright if you are."

The man nodded, his gaze turning back to the huntsmen. "We're headed for Al-Tijarah- but if you want it, we'd be happy to take you to VC."

Daria's face lit up in shock, mouth going agape. "...Wait- you're kidding me, right?"

"You're huntsmen from Beacon, you said? It's the least we can do. Road from Tijarah to VC's not as bad as whatever you all've been through, but it's still got its problems. Least we can do to give you a hand would be flying you into Shade."

"We're just militia," The woman cut in, inclining her head with a warm grin. "It'd be an honor to give you all a hand."

"We'll stop at Tijarah on the way in, call it in, and fly you the rest of the way..." He nodded again. "Like she said. It would be an honor."

The woman looked over them, gaze hesitating on Gail and Oracle, her bright expression fading slightly. "...Sorry it took us so long. We had to call in the emergency flare," The archer's face split with a satisfied smile at that. "...You all look like you've been through hell."

Daria gave a small smile of her own. "...Yeah. Something like that."

The man took a seat, looking out over the night sky, the shattered moon beaming down at them. "...It'll be a couple hour flight to VC. If you don't mind; you guys are _huntsmen_, hearing your guys' story sounds a whole lot more interesting than Arrón's mixtape for the eighth time."

"_Cállate._" She muttered back to him, bemused smile playing at her lips.

The Mistrali huntress looked around at her team; those still conscious beaten, bruised, and exhausted; Gail and Oracle laying, the former dozing off into sleep, the latter tucked tightly in a blanket, her breathing beginning to calm and center.

Her small smile warmed, looking back up to the Vacuoan soldiers. "...Alright. I think we've got a story or two."

The near dozen ships began to propel themselves through the night, arcing over the dark desert below and back to across the mainland; leaving the shattered, sinking sloop and the slowly disappearing body of the lifeless Sea Feilong.


	12. Chapter 12: Let's Just Live

**Chapter 12: Let's Just Live**

* * *

Daria's gaze rose up the length of the building- a monolithic structure, arranged like a pyramid, with four layers, each smaller than the last. The building towered over the city center, itself abustling street, packed tightly with people rushing to and fro busily. Shouts echoed out over the buzzing murmur of the crowd; some insults, others simply yelling to be heard over the music of the city.

Lance's body jerked, suddenly shouldered out of the way as a man quickly passed him- the swordsman turned with an irritated, and warning, scowl, swiftly met by the man's own irritated, and warning, glare. The huntsman cocked his head to the side, drawing himself up to his full height, one hand reaching to idly rest on the handle of Iron Maw. After a moment, the man continued on, hissing out a curse under his breath, the encounter ending as swiftly as it began.

The greatswordsman let out a scoff, turning back to his companions. "...Welcome to Vacuo City. The same _shithole_ as always; where all the Vacuoans hate the other Vacuoans- but they hate us a whole lot more. Peachy keen."

Gail's eyebrows furrowed, the archer looking around at the packed square, taking in the massive, high-rising buildings that dominated the downtown, central section of the city- shaped as if several, separate buildings stacked atop each other, reaching high into the sky. "This place is... absolutely _packed_. How do people live like this?"

"This is the centerpiece of Vacuoan society. I mean that totally literally; we're in the center of the city. Safest place in the kingdom that's not wolf territory, and in that regard, most Vacuoans don't respond well to the Platinas' _specific_ brand of totalitarianism... _gods_, hate this fuckin' place."

Daria shook her head, beginning her way forwards. "Alright, alright, enough of that; let's go. We wouldn't want to keep the headmaster waiting." She nodded to the others, and the quintet began their way towards the stairs leading up into Shade Academy.

"...Ho- Holy _shit_! ...Daria? _Lance_?!"

The huntsmen stopped in their tracks, the aforementioned warriors' eyes widening in shock and confusion. Something collided _hard_ with Gail, nearly taking the archer off of her feet, the wind rushing from her. She looked down to the source of the impact, peering between a pair of tall rabbit ears; and warm brown eyes met warm brown. The archer let out a soft gasp, lips curling into a disbelieving smile.

Velvet Scarlatina- dressed in her browns and golds, looked up to her with a brilliant smile, then pulled back, speaking in her light, lilting accent. "It's so _good _to see you again!" She cried, taking Gail's face in her hands.

"Velt!" The archer said, pulling the shorter huntress into an embrace of her own; voice rising to a giddy, near squeak.

Before they could react, Lance and Daria were dragged towards each other, drawn into tight embraces themselves- between the duo, lifting them both off of the ground, was Coco Adel; her beret pushed back on her head, dark sunglasses nearly falling from her face. She set the huntsmen back down, and turned to pull Daria close, pressing a kiss against her cheek, before turning up to Lance, dragging him down to the do the same.

"What the _hell_!" She yelled, pushing the duo away from her, beaming grin never fading from her face. Walking up behind her was the towering form of Yatsuhashi Daichi, his green armor gleaming, and the lithe Fox Alistair, his hands in his pockets, head bowed with a small, bemused smile of his own.

The opposite trio of Beacon huntsmen gathered around Team CFVY, Shinai and Ulysses standing behind them. Daria pulled Coco back into a tight hug, before pushing her to arm's length, face split with shocked glee. "What the hell, yourself! Gods, it's been so long!"

"Yeah it has! what are you guys doing here- did you guys just get in?"

"Yeah, last night; what about you?"

"We've been here a couple of weeks now. Looks like we made pretty good time after all," The leader of CFVY said, giving her teammates a grin- before her gaze turned from Daria to Ulysses and Shinai. Her expression wavered for a moment in concern. When she brought her attention back to the other leader, it fell slightly, looking her over. "...What happened to you guys?"

Daria's own expression dampened slightly, letting her arms drop from Coco. "...It's, uh... it's been a _long_ six months," The warmth returned to her quickly, though, looking the other huntress over as well. "But _you guys_! What are _you all_ doing here?"

Coco stepped back towards her trio, arms crossing, smile twisting in satisfaction. "After Beacon fell- we decided to come out here to join Shade," She nodded, looking around at the packed city. "Lot of Vale refugees headed out west, so Vacuo needed all of the huntsmen it could get. That must be why you guys are here, huh?"

"I..." Daria began, before trailing off. She looked to her teammates, her elation fading back to solemnity. "...Not exactly- but that's not really important! It's... it's so _good_ to see you guys again."

Fox stepped forwards, eyebrows furrowing. "You're... missing a few people."

The quintet fell into silence, before Gail gave him a slight smile. "...Oracle took some... heavy hits last night. She's fine, though! And... and Nash and Rainier... they didn't come with us."

"Oh..." Velvet said quietly, features softening. "...I'm sorry."

"It's fine," Daria cut in quickly, raising a brusque hand, waving them off. "They left for their own reasons. We had a job to do, so we'll do it- with as few or as many people as we need to."

"Speaking of," Coco continued. "If you guys aren't here to enlist, why _did _you come all this way? I can tell it wasn't much of a fun, off the cuff road trip."

"Ah, yeah- we're here to meet with the Headmaster," She said, eyes going hard with determination. "It's about what happened at Beacon, and it's a matter of urgency."

This time, it was CFVY that went quiet, looking to each other uncertainly. Finally, Coco sighed, gesturing towards the stairs leading to the Academy's first floor. "Yeah, you'll... you'll... you'll really want to talk to Professor Phoenix. He can explain better than I could. Come on, his office is top floor; it's a long walk."

The Beacon huntsmen shared mirror frowns, before following after the newly-ordained Vacuoan huntsmen, beginning the climb towards the mega-building's summit.

* * *

The oak doors towered over the warriors, dominating the far end of the hallway, closed to the outside world- the interior of Shade, like the exterior, was made of rough, dark stone, packed in tight bricks, lit up with warm lights flanking each side of the hall, and hanging from the ceiling.

Daria came to a stop, looking over the set of doors with a hesitant frown, hands gripping tightly at her sides. Coco placed a hand onto her shoulder, giving it a squeeze. "Phoenix is waiting for you. Quick warning, though- he's a little... _prickly's_ probably a good word. Hey, and just remember that this isn't Beacon. People work a... _lot _differently here, and he might... rub you the wrong way," She gave the other leader another comforting squeeze. "Good luck. Hey- maybe tonight we can all go out and get drinks. My treat. It's... it's nice to see some old faces again," She smiled around at the other Beacon huntsmen. "...Anyways, have fun."

Coco turned with a wave, making her way back towards the stairs- her head held high, a bright smile painted across her features, joining her team as the quartet began the descent again. Lance watched them go, before turning back forwards. "...Well... _shit_. Here we are."

Gail smiled up to him. "...Not terribly bad for a few kids from Beacon."

"Yeah. Not bad at all."

Daria took a deep, steadying breath; her shoulders squared, her chin lifted high, her eyes went hard, and she made her way down the remaining length of the hallway, the rest of her team behind her.

She knocked hard twice against the great doors. There was a moment of silence- and they slowly creaked open, wisps of smoke curling off of the door handle, and lead out into a simply _massive_ office. The room was square in design, warmly colored and decorated, a hulking window dominating the far side looking out over Shade Academy and the busy city beyond.

A series of large portraits spread across one wall; a girl in a polka-dotted dress holding a dog, grinning; an older man, smiling, his hair and beard long and gray; a man standing ramrod straight, his suit stark white and tailored against his form, dark hair combed neatly backwards, hard stare looking out over the office- _General James Ironwood- _and beside him was a man in a dark suit, cane held in front of him casually; green scarf disappearing down into his jacket. His silver hair was wild around his head, his brown eyes soft.

Professor Ozpin stared out towards the huntsmen with a sly grin, his features- even painted- warm and affectionate; a mug held in his free hand, even its steam painted.

The warriors stared back for a long moment, transfixed by the old Professor until the sound of someone clearing their throat echoed out over the room, drawing their gazes back forwards. A massive desk dominated the center of the room- hardy and square in design, its surface littered haphazardly with papers and folders, a cold cup of coffee left long forgotten.

Sitting at the desk was a man; lithe in frame, skin dark, his hair deep red, struck through with brilliant gold; he was dressed in a fine tailored red suit, embroidered with teal and gold; his brilliant blue-green eyes were hard as they met the huntsmen's own.

He leaned forwards, elbows on the desk's surface, hands steepled in front of his mouth, his gaze flitting over each of the warriors. He took a deep breath, leaning back, his face stoic and unmoved. "..._So_," He said, voice flat in tone. "You're the huntsmen from Beacon I've heard so much about."

Daria stepped forwards. "Yes, we-"

"-Have come a long way, yes, yes, I've heard it all before. Let's get this over with- did you bring your transcripts?"

She looked to her teammates, eyebrows furrowing. "...Uh... our... transcripts?"

He rolled his eyes. "_Yes_, your transcripts, which you'll need to enroll for next semester. You didn't bring transcripts? Did Glynda _not_ give you transcripts? Is her memory going in her old age?"

"...We're... not here to enroll."

That brought him to a stop, blinking, stoic features finally falling in a modicum of surprise. "...Oh? Then... _why are you here_?"

She stepped forwards again. "We came to talk to you. We left Beacon after it fell on a lead from Qrow Branwen- we know that the people who attacked Beacon are going to attack Haven Academy, and after that they'll be coming to Shade. It's why we trekked across Sanus; we needed to warn you."

Phoenix stared at her, face stoic and still, gaze unblinking. He slowly leaned backwards, eyes averting from the huntsmen to stare idly into the distance, chewing on a thought quietly. After a heavy breath, he cleared his throat again. "...I'm sorry to disappoint you."

"What? Why?"

"Because I'm not the man you came to see."

Lance raised an eyebrow. "And that means what, exactly?"

"You're looking for Professor Theodore; the headmaster of Shade."

The quintet went quiet, their gazes locked onto the professor. After a long moment, Daria cleared her throat, stepping forwards with a frown. "Uh... and where is he?"

"...We don't know."

Ulysses suddenly let out a bitter bark of a laugh, throwing his head back, before turning and marching from the room, shaking his dark locks from side to side- all the while chuckling sardonically. Gail turned towards the retreating giant, features twisting in consternation; Shinai put a hand on her shoulder before she could do anything else, giving her a small shake of his head.

Daria didn't watch Ulysses go, immediately striding forwards to press her hands against the surface of the desk, leaning towards the professor; her expression twisting in confusion and irritation. "What the hell do you _mean _you don't _know_?!"

Phoenix looked from her hands to her eyes with an unimpressed stare. He leaned back, clearing his throat, taking a moment before speaking. "...We don't know."

"How long has he been gone?" Shinai asked, stepping to the side.

The professor looked up as the samurai spoke, blinking as if just noticing his presence. "Since not long after Beacon fell."

"You're shitting me." Lance spat, body slumping in dismay.

"I'm not, and watch your tongue in this office," Phoenix said, tone ever dry. The huntsmen simply stared across at him- Daria not moving from her position bearing down over him. Finally, he let out a sigh. "...Shortly after we received news of Beacon's fall, he went... _pensive_\- this was unusual for Theodore, as he's a reckless, impulsive man on the best of days. A few days later, he called a meeting of staff and announced that he was going to find a way to protect the Academy, protect the _Kingdom _and then... he just disappeared,"

His gaze turned over the quartet again, taking a sip of his coffee. "...That was five months ago. Since then, I've had to step up and take control of Shade, trying not to let it burn to the ground, because of _course Theodore was too thick-headed to put a plan into place for after he left_-" The temperature of the room began to rapidly increase with each word, waves of heat visibly waving off of the desktop, his coffee beginning to reheat. The professor stopped his tirade, closing his eyes tightly. The room began to cool, and the tension left him with another sigh. "...Anyways. That's all we know. We've had scouts striking out all across the kingdom- to no avail. No one has seen hide nor hair of the man,"

He spread his hands out. "Welcome to Vacuo, Valemen. I hope that it was worth the travel."

Daria found her way to a chair opposite Phoenix, dark gaze going distant, staring past him towards the window. She moved to speak several times, mouthing moving soundlessly, before finally mustering the words. "..._So_..." Her features returned to their hard gaze. "So, _you're _the headmaster now?"

He let out an empty laugh. "_No_. Headmasters have to be confirmed by the others- Ozpin in particular- or by the Council, which is one of the only things that cabinet is good for. Or, if you're Theodore, simply beating him in a fight would do. Ozpin's dead, there's no way to contact the others, and our Council has long been broken in disarray. So, _no_. I'm terribly sorry that you've come all this way for nothing. However," His gaze softened. "Marching across Sanus is an impressive feat, and you came here for a reason. Tomorrow, we'll discuss further actions, and a unified plan going forwards; for now, we will allow you dorm rooms to stay in, until further notice. Now- will that be everything? I have work to do."

The huntsmen's leader shot to her feet, turning to storm out of the office wordlessly, hands white knuckled fists. Lance rolled his eyes, following after her, Shinai a step behind after offering the Vacuoan a small bow. Gail hesitated, giving the professor a small smile. "_Thank you._" She said, before taking off after her teammates.

Phoenix watched them go for a moment, his light eyes going tired and heavy as he turned back to the papers strewn across his desk.

* * *

Daria sat down onto the stiff mattress of the lower bunk bed, her gaze washing over the tiny dorm room, built of the same dark stone as the rest of the Academy. She slumped down, burying her face into her hands- she exhaled deeply, the tension draining from her.

Gail sat down beside her, and placed a hand onto her shoulder, giving it a comforting squeeze. "We'll be alright. A missing Headmaster, all things considered, is low on the list of terrible things that's happened to us."

The leader shook her head as Lance and Shinai joined them. Her gaze rose- dark irises filled with exhaustion. "I'd just... like a break. Just one. Just one, _tiny_ break, where everything just turns out _okay_, and we do everything that we want to. Just _one_."

"Yeah, well, we kinda pissed that away when we decided to dig our heels in and do the whole 'hero, saving the world' thing," Lance said, leaning against the door frame with a small smirk. "And now we're neck deep in the most frustrating, backwards ass academy in the world, with no real idea where to go next. _Hooray!_" He accompanied the final word with a small gesture of jazz hands.

"Lance, you're not helping." Gail muttered, giving him a sour look.

The greatswordsman shrugged, his grin never fading. "Course I am. _Look at us_\- we fought our asses off at Beacon. Yeah, we mighta lost, but we sure as hell gave it everything we had. Now we're here- and we're _still _fighting our asses off. And you know what? We might lose. Maybe we _can't_ stop Shade from falling- they kinda deserve it, honestly. But we'll fight our asses off even then. And we'll keep fighting, and keep fighting. We'll fight our asses all the way to Mistral and Haven if we have to, and then we'll fight our asses off across the north to Atlas if we have to,"

He pushed off the door, drawing even with Shinai and standing across from the huntresses. "We're goddamn _huntsmen_. We've been through worse than this, and we'll get through it too. And if we have to drag Theodore, and Phoenix, and all these overly prideful, asshole Vacuoans to safety, kicking and screaming- we'll do that too. Shit looks bad, it _always _looks bad. We're pretty used to that at this point," He reached up and rubbed the back of his neck.

"I know I'm the one who usually tries and keep us pragmatic, but look- we're _here_. Six assholes from Beacon made it all the way to Vacuo City. I'm godsdamned _proud _of us. And if you all wanted me to march my ass to hell- I'd do it with a smile on my face, because I'd be doing it with _you_," He grinned broadly again. "You guys are my _family_. I'd absolutely be willing to die for you. And yeah, shit looks bad; yeah, shit just seems to fall apart no matter what we do. And yeah, I don't _know_ what to do. I don't know where to go, or what our next steps are. I don't _know_,"

"All I do know is that when I'm with you guys; I'm at home. And I'll keep fighting my ass off, if you guys'll do it with me."

There was a beat of silence- and Daria's face split with a grin, wiping away the tears welling in her eyes. "..._Sappy bastard,_" She sniffed hard, rising to her feet, the archer beside her. "..._Alright_... you're right. You're always right, somehow," She looked around at the rest of her team, nodding. "So we keep moving, then. We'll meet with Phoenix tomorrow. And we'll _save _this stupid kingdom, if it's the last thing that we do. We made a vow to keep what happened in Beacon from happening here, and damn it, I'm keeping that vow,"

"Tonight, we _get to_ take a break; because tomorrow, we get back to fighting."

* * *

Rainier stared out across the warm waters of the Pianure Sea, the surface rocking and bucking in large waves, before coming crashing back down. He picked a few notes idly on his guitar, expression lost in thought, watching the tide washing in towards his feet. He sat in this absent reverie for a moment, until-

"Rain?

The young wolf jolted back to reality, turning over his shoulder- to Remy, the White Wolf walking forwards with a concerned look; and a few meters away, staring out towards the horizon, was Leo, hands buried in his pockets, though still keeping his sons in his peripheral.

"Where've you been?" The veteran warrior asked, drawing even with his brother. "It's been days. No one's heard anything from you."

Rainier looked back towards the sea, nodding in agreement, eyebrows raising. Finally, he rose to his feet, brushing sand off of his legs. He turned back towards his brother, slinging his guitar over his shoulder. "I had to go do a... little bit of thinking. Introspection, I suppose you'd say. I needed to be on my own for that."

"...And?"

"And... I apologize," He looked past his brother to his father, the eldest Platina looking over with a cocked eyebrow. "I... I'm sorry. Truly. I've been so... _lost_, buried in my own misery that... I let the world overtake me. I've been standing still, refusing to move on for _months _now," He looked back out over the ocean. "...And while I sit at home, people die. Grimm and bandits and now the White Fang? And... and the people who attacked Beacon. They're out there, doing gods know what, while I... sit and _watch_. And I won't have it, not anymore. I'm a huntsman. That meant something to me, once; and it'll mean something again,"

He looked back to his family. "So, I'm ready; to move on, and to move forwards. I'm ready to fight; I'm _willing _to fight. Because that's what huntsmen do," He began to step away from them, making his way back towards the cliffs suspending the Platina villa high above the beach. "We've the end of the world to stop, as far as I'm aware, and I have a few people I need to pay back for taking my school from me."

With that, the youngest wolf took off across the sands, idly sauntering back towards his home, humming a quiet melody, leaving the elder Platinas standing alone in front of the Pianure. After a moment watching Rainier go, Remy and Leo locked gazes, the former's eyebrow raising, the latter letting out a scoff. "And what did I tell you?" The White Wolf asked, lips curling into a satisfied smile.

The patriarch turned back to the horizon, arms crossing, his expression twisting sourly. "He's lying, you're aware."

"I'm well aware."

"He isn't moving on."

"Of course not."

"So stop being smug."

"He doesn't _need_ to move on; I could give a shit about that," Remy said, watching his brother scale the stairs back up the cliffside. "And he probably never will; you know him. Emotional, carries grudges with fervor. But I'd much rather have an angry, bitter, and vengeful Rainier to the broken, depressed, and defeated Rainier he's been," The White Wolf watched his father quietly for a moment. "...And he's right."

"Hm?"

"The Fang are here. Refugees are flooding the kingdom. Grimm and bandits are treating the wastes like an all you can eat buffet. And the people that attacked Vale? Beacon won't be the only target; whatever they were looking for there, they'll look at the other Academies too; which means Shade's in the line of fire."

Leo grunted his acquiescence, features twisting in deep thought. "...You're both right, more than you know. Except, Theo won't accept our help. The old fool's too damn proud for that."

"Honestly? I don't care. Shade sits on its heels and watches as Vacuo tears itself apart. I'm beyond caring about old borders and old duties. We don't need Shade's permission," Remy said, with a short laugh. "This is _our _kingdom."

"And we'll protect it," Leo said, giving his son a stiff nod. The duo began to make their way back towards the cliff, the elder's arms crossing over his chest. "...Alright, then, Remyngton. You've convinced me; you've got my blessing to operate outside our borders, with full anatomy. Hunt down anyone who threatens Shade, make sure that if any of those bastards step foot in Vacuo, you deal with them with extreme prejudice. Theo may not want our help, but he'll get it, one way or another. I'll handle any blowback on the other Council members' parts. Do what you have to. And Remy?"

"Yeah?"

"When you find them, throw those fucking White Fang back out of our kingdom."

The White Wolf let out a bark of a laugh. "Trust me, Father; I'll do _much_ worse than that."

* * *

Lance leaned back in his chair, idly tapping at his Scroll, blue eyes rimmed with red and surrounded by deep, dark bags. He scratched his chin idly, staring down at the screen below him- Oracle's smiling face, holding her camera away from herself, Ulysses, Shinai and the swordsman in the background, looking to her in surprise; the brilliant green of the Emerald Forest and its massive trees rising high above them.

"...You... _jackass_."

The voice was weak, and croaking, and broke down into splutters and coughs at the end of the sentence. Lance was to his feet like a bullet, clearing the few feet to the hospital bed in a moment, a glass of water with a straw outstretched.

Oracle slowly brought her head up, wincing with pain, before beginning to greedily drink, sucking the liquid down with fervor. After draining half of the cup, she pulled back with a satisfied '_ah_'. She began to push herself up with her elbows, grimacing as she did, arms trembling with the effort.

Lance reached out and helped push her to a sitting position against the copious number of pillows behind her, giving the gunslinger a disbelieving smile. "You're _supposed _to be taking it easy, shithead."

"Shut up," She muttered, right hand coming up to massage her left shoulder, hissing in a breath at the contact. "Fuckin' _ow_," She grasped onto the collar of her hospital gown, pulling it down to look at the thick bundle of bandages wrapped around her shoulder, forearm and chest. With a small snarl, she hooked a finger under the wrappings, pulling it away to look at her skin-

Across the upper quarter of her body- a series of red scars stretched across her skin, splaying out like pine leaves, reaching up the side of her neck, down her forearm, and across her ribs. She let out a low whistle, tired green eyes blinking owlishly. "Fuckin' sick scars, though, gotta say..."

Lance shook his head, dragging his chair over to her bedside. "You're the _dumbest_ hick I've ever met."

"...I've a confession to make," She muttered, leaning back again, her gaze falling to meet his own. "...I'm not actually a hick... yea... grew up in a big house, ma and pa had lots a money... I'mma fraud."

The duo shared the stare for a moment, before the swordsman scoffed. "...I _really_ don't give a shit. And it's way besides the point- you took a fuckin' lightning blast to the face for me."

"Yea, well... I owed ya... and it wasn' ta the face, it was to the tit."

"Owed me? Owed me for- for _the Vytal Festival_? Are you fucking _kidding _me?"

"Ya saved my ass, I save yours..."

"I saved you from getting hit in a stupid _tournament_. You tried to sacrifice your fuckin' life for that, _seriously_?"

Oracle was quiet, heavy eyes looking over his astonished features. "...Yea, I wouldn' buy it either..." She let out a sigh, her hand reaching out to gently rest on his own- the swordsman jolting in surprise at the contact, his eyes snapping between her and their hands. She took a deep breath. "...Lance, I'd've taken a _thousand _lightnin' blasts for ya... cause right then... I saw you dyin' in my head... and I wouldn' let that happen... not in a hundred thousand years."

"...You _dumb _fuckin' rich girl," He muttered- his fingers slowly intertwining in hers. "You don't have to do anything stupid like that."

"Yea, well... if you weren' so fuckin' _slow_, maybe I wouldn' have ta."

"Oh, really?"

"Like a... bag of fuckin' bricks, you are," Tears began to well in her eyes. "...I-"

"Fine, if you won't say it than I will. Cowgirl, I love your stupid ass," He said quickly, pushing the words out as fast as they would come; and the room went very quiet, broken only by the idle whirring and beeping of the cardiograph beside them. "...I came all this way, to this shit-stained kingdom I swore I'd _never _come back to, fought my ass off, nearly died on a _stupid_ number of occasions, and you know what? I'd do it all again, as long as _you_ were there... O, you are the absolute _best_ thing to ever happen to me. You push me, challenge me, and over the past two years, you've made me a godsdamned good person. You, you stubborn, stupid woman, are the only person other than my dad that I've ever loved- _really _loved, and you _have to_ stop taking lightning blasts to the tit for me. They're nice tits, and I won't let you do that to yourself."

She let out a hoarse laugh, reaching up with her good hand to wipe the stray tears from her cheeks. "...That was a... real nice speech, blondie..." She struggled to move for a moment, then lay back, giving him a side-eye. "...I can' get up, so yer gonna have ta come here."

He returned the short scoff, and leaned down, pulling her into an embrace, their lips meeting; and there, the two huntsmen stayed for a long moment, holding each other tightly to one another.

Lance finally leaned back, smiling down at the gunslinger, wiping a single, renegade tear from his own eye, and she grinned toothily back at him. "Alright, hell, now I have to say it... I love ya, blondie. I've loved ya for a real long time now… just too chicken shit to tell ya. I can face down a fuckin' sea dragon no problem, but can't tell my best friend I love 'im. Life's funny like that."

"Yeah, well... same. Also, if you thought that that one was good, you should've seen the sickest speech I gave earlier to the others- oh _man_, was it good."

She let out a laugh, wincing in pain as she did, before emerald green met sky blue again. And the two warriors sat there, reveling in that moment quietly, softly embracing each other.

* * *

Ulysses leaned against the metal railing, staring down at the lower level of Vacuo City, lit up with thousands of lights against the darkening night, its highways running through the city jammed full of vehicles, its airspace similarly a rushed flurry of activity. He took a deep breath, feeling the cool desert air enter his lungs, refreshing, eyes closing.

"Nice going back there."

He snapped back to reality with a snarl, hands reflexively clenching the metal bars tightly, his entire body going taut with tension. There was a beat of silence, as he said nothing- and a hand gripped his shoulder tightly.

"You_ look at me_ when I'm talking to you, boy!" He wheeled around, and dark eyes met dark. Ludwig gave him an ugly, satisfied grin, stepping back, his massive arms crossing over his chest. "You _can't_ ignore me. I'm part of you. That _thing_ in you? That rage? That's me. It'll _always_ be me. I_ own you. _Even when I'm dead."

Ulysses drew himself up to his full height- still standing shorter than the hallucinatory figure of his father. "That's right. _You're dead_. Because I killed you."

"_Heh_. Like I said," Ludwig said dryly, turning towards the busy streets of the city below. "Real nice going back there, with the dragon. You were_ so close_, weren't you? If those soldiers hadn't shown up... you'd have been dead. That thing would've torn you to shreds, and it'd be over. _So damn close,_" He peered over the edge. "...You know; that's a real long drop... hell, I don't know if even _you_ could survive it," Ulysses let out a growl, storming away from the edge, face twisted in dark fury. The image of his father looked up, sneering bitterly. "No, you won't- because then it'd be your fault, huh? You wouldn't be able to pretend that you went out a hero. Y'know, I really was right! You are a damn coward!"

The hulking huntsman stopped, eyebrows furrowing, eyes going dark. He turned on his heel, and marched back to where his father had been, coming to a stop next to the railing. He peered down over the edge, hands gripping the metal tightly again. He stared down at the rushing lights below, taking a deep breath. The tension drained from him, his grip loosening, and his head dropped low. "...I'm _not _a coward," He muttered, voice soft and cracking. "...I'm strong. Strong. _Strong_... stronger than you. _Stronger than_..."

"...Ulysses?"

The giant jolted back to attention, turning hard on his heel- and Gail stared over to him, her eyebrows raised and features twisted in concern, one hand reached out towards him slightly. She swallowed hard, taking a few tentative steps forwards. "...Is... is everything alright?" She asked quietly

"I..." He trailed off, his tone still soft, turning back to the highway below. When he spoke again, his voice had returned to its deep growl. "...I'm fine."

"...No..." She said quietly, stepping up with him, gaze not moving from his face. "...No, I don't think you are... and... that's okay," He looked up, dark eyes hard, guarded; but curious. "...I don't know that I'm okay. I know that Daria and Shinai definitely aren't okay... and Oracle's half dead... but we're here, aren't we?" She met his gaze with a small, sad smile. "I... know that you're going through a lot. I know that there's a lot you won't tell us. And that's _okay_. You hurt... and I think that that's okay too. You have to hurt to heal."

He let out a low laugh, gaze casting over the darkening skyline and the dense urban jungle surrounding them. "..._Hurt_... see, you don't get it... you've never gotten it, none of you have ever gotten it. And I don't get _you_."

"...O- oh?" She asked, face falling in confusion.

His expression went pensive. "I _rage_. With every fiber of my being, _I rage_. Against everything, _anything_ that hurts. It's- it's what gets me up in the morning, what gets me through the day, what lets me suffer through all of this horror and struggle. But you? You _don't_..." He snarled in distaste. "I _get_ Lance- he's got that same anger; he hides it, under bravery, and humor, and . I _get_ Daria- how do you think she got out here? _Spite_. Spite and fury. Shinai's broken, Oracle fights for justice- but _you_? There's no _pain_. No _hate_. How? How could you survive Beacon, survive this trek, without anything to push you?"

Gail was silent for a moment, dark eyes slowly drifting from him. She swallowed hard, leaning against the railing; and when she spoke again, it was barely more than a whisper. "...Because pain's a cycle; we take our pain, and we give it back to others. Like a... a _self-fulfilling prophesy_. And if I don't heal, if I don't love, if I don't try and move on... how can all of you? I... I try and be a- a _source_, for you all. Something good and loving to hold onto. It's... I see it like- like you're all _drowning_, and... I'm treading water. If I don't try and bring you to the surface, then... what good am I? I might as well drown too..."

She turned to walk away- but hesitated, placing a hand gently onto his shoulder. "...I... I can't _save you_, Ulysses. I wish that could. I want to, with every fiber of my being... but I can't save you, or Shinai, or Daria... all I want to do is... show you that you can save yourself. Try to get some sleep, okay? I'll see you in the morning."

Ulysses watched the archer go, slinking off into the darkness back towards the monolithic Shade Academy. His mouth fell slightly, heavy features lightening in shock. He swallowed hard, dark gaze turning back down to the highway below. A voice burned in the back of his head; heavy, dark, enraged- but he didn't listen. _Refused to listen_. The burning intensified, drawing a frustrated scowl to his face, and he let out a frustrated growl through grit teeth.

The giant brusquely turned away, stalking off into the night, his hands clenched into white-knuckled fists.

* * *

"Okay, easy, now, easy, easy- AH, I SAID _EASY_!"

Helen Aspis skittered backwards quickly, her hands raised high, bumping into a wooden table. "Sorry, sorry! I'm sorry, did that hurt?!"

Nash clenched his eyes together tightly, teeth gritting against each other. He took a sharp exhale of breath, nodding profusely. "Yuh... yuh huh, yuh huh, yuh huh."

"Kyana, you have to know more about this kind of thing than I do, right?" She said making her way back towards him, idly wiping red smears from her hands onto her skirt.

The girl standing to the side shook her head fervently, amber gaze falling anywhere but the two Aspis'. "Nope, nope, nope- I _don't_ do well with blood, not at all."

"_Well, I've got no problem with that part_," Helen muttered under her breath, before reaching out towards her son again. "How does it feel, hon?"

Nash took a moment, taking a deep, shuddering breath in. "Oh, yeah, totally, feel's good, _feel's good_\- hey, let's do the other one, yeah?"

"What? Right now? Immediately?"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, totally- adrenaline's pumpin', let's _go_!"

"Alright, alright, hold your horses!" Helen reached to the side, pulling a red and gold device from the sterile metal cart beside them. She raised his arm up and pushed it towards him, their dual blue gazes meeting. "Ready?"

"Yep, yep, yep."

"Okay. Three... two-"

She pushed forwards, and Nash let out a yelp, jumping away from her, ripping himself free from her grasp. He crashed hard into a wooden table, doubling over with a grimace. "Motherfucking- sonuvabitch- piece of shit- fff_fraglerock!_"

"_Nash, lan_\- you're fine, you're fine, sorry."

He nodded in understanding, reaching out and giving her a thumbs up- and the room froze. Kyana pushed off of her position to the side of the workshop, her eyes as wide as Helen's own. Nash looked down his arm, to the source of the shock.

A red and gold thumb, high in the air. He slowly straightened up, bringing the limb palms up to face him.

A red and gold hand. His forearm twitched, his wrist caked in a small amount of blood- and the fingers moved in response, curling and uncurling experimentally. He swallowed hard, unable to move his gaze away from it. He brought his other hand up; three fingers of flesh- and two of metal. He curled the limb into a fist, feeling the cool steel press against his palm.

He swallowed hard- and slowly, a bright grin began to climb across his face.

"You did it..." Kyana whispered.

Helen summarily exploded into ecstasy, arms spreading out wide. "You did it!" She dashed forwards and pulled her son into a tight embrace, picking him off of the ground and spinning him around. "_You did it_!"

"I... I _did it_." He said, voice matching the dumbfoundment in his face.

"Oh," She cried, bringing him back down and pressing a kiss into his cheek. "I'm _so_ proud of you," Her joy slowly faded, being replaced by a look of somber realization. "...I'm so proud of you." She whispered, caressing his cheek.

He grinned to her, before pulling back, stepping to the side, his gaze falling onto the wooden table beside them. He lashed out with a falling fist- and ripped the corner off of the workbench, sending it, and a small cloud of dust, to the concrete floor below.

"Holy shit!"

"Okay, _now_ watch your language." Helen said chastisingly, though her smile never left her face.

"Sorry, sorry," He said quietly, again looking over his new mechanical limbs. "I mean... I feel like a brand new boy. A super strong, brand new boy."

Kyana stepped forwards pulled him into an embrace, smiling giddily down at the red and gold hands. She pushed him to arm's length, giving him a cocked head look. "So, Mr. Two Hands... now what?"

He froze, jubilation fading slightly. He turned out of the corner of his eye- to the object suspended by chains against the far wall, covered in its heavy, dusty tarp. He swallowed hard again. "...First, _painkillers_. Lots of 'em. And then... I've got... more work to do, I guess," He pulled away from her, shooing both her and his mother away with both hands. "But you've gotta both go for that, it's gonna get _weird_."

Immediately, Helen turned on her heel, making her way to the broad doors leading out to the yard. "I don't want to know about that."

Kyana lingered for a moment- and then jerked to attention. "Nope, yeah, don't wanna know about that either," She turned and began to follow Helen out of the workshop- but slowed as she reached the threshold. She turned over her shoulder back to Nash, offering a sincere, sweet smile. "...Knew you could do it. Daddy did too. We're both lookin' forward to whatever weird monster-thing comes out of here."

"Heh... yeah. Me too. Okay, shoo, shoo. _Shoo_."

She let out a small laugh, stepping out and crossing the yard towards his house, disappearing around the corner.

The mechanic watched her go for a moment, his wide smile falling to a smaller one. He looked back down to his hands, slowly flexing them- watching the mechanical joints shift, the soft whirring of their internal pieces. Finally, he clenched those fists, and snapped free from his reverie, beginning to make his way across the workshop- around the cart, the shattered table, across the paved floor, and to the back wall.

He stared up at the covered object, up to the chains suspending it off the ground; across the dirty, dusty tarp concealing it. The former huntsmen swallowed hard, hands clenching into tight fists- and the sensation of cool metal brought his small smile back to his face.

"...I'm not afraid of you," He whispered, puffing his chest up, shoring his resolve. "...I mean, I probably _should_ be... but I won't be. You can't hurt me. You won't hurt me, not now. Not anymore. It's just you and me now, pal... and we've got a lot of talkin' to do. One on one. _Mano e mano_,"

He reached up with his fully mechanical hand, gripping the covering tightly- and hesitated. He let out a slow breath- and in one swift motion, ripped the tarp away.

And pulled only half of it off, the rest barely budging. He rolled his eyes, beginning to tug hand over fist clumsily, struggling to drag it completely off of the object. Until finally, it fell limply away, bundling up in a pile beneath him. His gaze rose from it-

And stared into the shattered, and halved, glass visor of Phalanx.

The mech suit itself was a rent, torn mess; its helm cleaved in half, red painted steel- flaking away- singed black with heat; its left arm ripped at the elbow joint, leaving wires and mechanics hanging limply; its torso, gouged deeply with singed steel; its right leg, removed from where it had been torn useless by the glowing blade-

The glowing blade held by the man, with the hateful, glowing golden eyes, and the cackle that made Nash's blood run cold.

He took a stuttering step backwards- but refused to look away from Phalanx. He swallowed hard, pushing himself back to a standing position, making his way towards the destroyed mech suit, fighting to steady his breathing, calm his panic.

He slowly reached up, pressing his hand against the shattered chest piece. "..._Look at you_," He whispered. "Just... torn to shit. This wasn't what was supposed to happen to you. You were _invincible_, bud... you were supposed to be, anyways..." He pressed his forehead to the cool red metal. "...Maybe _that_ was my problem... I was convinced we were..._ I_ let this happen to you... And I'm sorry... you deserved better than that... you deserved better from me,"

Nash reached up, finding his way around the arm hole of the suit, hand grasping onto something, pulling it tightly. He stepped away as the front half of the chestplate fell heavily to the ground, metal clattering loudly against concrete. He looked back up to the mech, blue eyes bright. "...But now... we've got a second shot at this... And I can't do it without you... so whattaya say? We give this one last go?" He was silent for a moment. "...You can't answer, you're a dead robot,"

The mechanic reached to the side, grasping a small controller, pressing a button in; Phalanx lowered to the ground, remaining foot pressing to the pavement below. Nash reached his offhand up, looking over the palm of the mechanical limb- and pressed a finger against the black screen buried within.

It lit up, with the familiar sight of a Scroll's home screen. A few more button presses sounded out, and a high-pitched whirring sounded throughout the workshop. The boy looked across the room, his gaze meeting the black lens of a camera panning down to him and the mech. He leaned forwards against the workshop table ahead of him, blowing out a dramatic breath. "...Alright. I guess class is in session. This is Nash Aspis, recording Log #1 for Project Phalanx, Volume 4.0,"

Nash looked back down to Phalanx, a small grin crossing his features.

* * *

Daria's legs hung off of the edge of the second highest layer of the Academy, kicking idly against the sloping side- her gaze rose to the moon high above, clouds rolling leisurely against the night sky. She pulled her hood tighter against herself, the chill desert air sinking deep into her skin. Slowly, she leaned back, looking back out across the horizon, with an exhausted sigh. Vacuo City stretched out in front of her; a labyrinth of narrow roads and alley ways, lit up from street to rooftop in brilliant lights, bursting with sound even at that late of hour.

The huntress took a deep breath in, releasing it slowly. "...What I would've given for you to see this," She whispered. She reached up, and her hand grasped onto the deep red cloth wrapped around her bicep. Slowly, she pulled it free, bringing it in front of her.

Tears pricked at the corner of her eyes, and she brought her gaze back up to the dim stars above, sniffing hard against the rising tide of fresh grief. "_You would've loved it_," She said, barely making her way through the sentence, before giving way to a choked sob. "Gods_... Gods_ I miss you. Every single _fucking _day, I miss you so... so much. And- and I keep _telling myself_ that you're still here, that you're not really gone- and I don't know if I'm bullshitting myself or someone else, but I just-" She stuttered to a stop, the words no longer coming.

She swallowed hard. "...Why'd you have to go? _It's not_... it's not fair... why... _why _did you go up there? _Why_? You- you _knew _you couldn't win that fight you... stupid, _stupid _girl..."

A hand rested gently on her shoulder, and she jolted at the contact, eyes going wide, adrenaline spiking through her system. Shinai slowly sat down beside his leader, violet gaze staring past the horizon as he came to a still, his hand still on her.

Daria stared at him, eyebrows furrowing, reaching up to quickly wipe the tears from her cheeks. "I- Shinai, w- what are you doing here?"

He was thoughtfully silent for a moment, before speaking in a soft voice: "...She saved my life. Did you know that?"

"I... no. I didn't."

He nodded- and his eyes watered slightly, his face twisting in old pain, muscles in his jaw tightening. He took a steadying breath. "...When... Shi En died, I... hurt so much... and I was so _angry_, this... deep, burning pit in my chest. And when I'd heard about the Mistral Regional Tournament, I dropped _everything_ to join. I wanted to fight- it's all I wanted to do... just... to hurt someone, to be hurt... to feel anything other than that raw wound,"

He wiped at his eyes, though his face was still stoic and still. "I knew that the tournament hosted some of the best, and I wanted... a challenge? A good fight? To be soundly beaten? I... I still don't know, exactly. But when I reached that final, against Nikos... I lost. But the worst part was... she didn't gloat... she didn't celebrate, or cheer, or go collect her trophy,"

"She came and sat beside me. She..." He shook his head. "She wrapped an arm around my shoulder and told me that it was alright. That... I should be proud. She walked with me back to the locker room. I apologized, and flew home. After... it didn't hurt so much. I could talk to others again, feel, and believe that... maybe it would be alright. That maybe... I could be proud,"

He looked over to her, a tear streaking down his cheek. "Now... now I'm not so certain. But Nikos, she... she did good things, because that was who she was. She... she was a hero, a _real _hero. She fought at Beacon because... _somebody _had to. And if there's anything I'm certain of- the _only _thing I'm certain of now," He turned his gaze to the moon. "...She is still here. Somewhere... and they can never take her from us."

Daria gave him a wavering smile, reaching up to wrap her arm around his shoulders, hugging him close. "...It _is _going to be alright. I know it is. And you _should _be proud... you're one of the best friends I have, and we never would've made it here without you."

At that, the samurai shook his head, lowering it, eyes closing. "No. No, that's not true. It's you who we wouldn't have made it without. I... I've done the best I can. And it hasn't been much, but... I'm no leader. Not anymore. You are, though. You and Oracle, and Lance- you make me proud... as little as that may mean. You brought us here. And you'll bring us further... of that I'm certain, and if there's any one person who can bring us to victory in this... it's you."

She sniffed again, clutching her red sash tightly. "...Thanks, Shin... so... what _do _we do next?"

The samurai was silent for a moment, taking a sharp breath in. "I... I don't know. Part of me says... stay. Fight for Shade, help the kingdom. Another part of me says to find Theodore. The rest of me... doesn't know. But whatever choice you make... I'll follow you. We all will."

Daria stared pensively out across the city- and then burst out with a sudden, shocked laugh, getting the samurai to turn towards her with a concerned look. She shook her head, pressing a hand to her lips in an attempt to stifle the bout of laughter. "No- no, sorry, it's- it's nothing. I just... we're halfway across the world, and you're still giving me nuggets of inspiration way too late at night. The more things change, huh?"

That brought a tiny smile to Shinai's face, before he rose to his feet, wiping the last remnants of wetness from his face. "...It's the least I can do for a friend- and my leader." He extended a hand to her, but she instead waved him off.

"I'm alright," She said quietly. "Just gonna... enjoy the night for a bit."

"Of course," He turned to leave, before hesitating. "Don't stay up too late, Daria."

"Course, course- _likewise_, Shinai."

The samurai continued his retreat, disappearing into the night, leaving the lone huntress sitting above Vacuo City.

She gave her sash one last look, a small smile claiming her face, before returning it to her bicep, retying it tightly. She turned back up to the night sky above, form relaxing as the night breeze washed over her.

* * *

Rainier's feet dug into the reddened tiles of the villa's roof, silver claws digging small rivets, his gaze locked onto the stars above, the chill desert air seeping into his form, his jacket flapping slightly against the wind. He pulled his knees closer to his chest, one arm wrapping around them.

The wolf took a steadying breath, his muscles tensing in anxious anticipation. Slowly, he released the breath, raising his hand to his face-

Held tightly within, was a folded piece of thick, waxy paper, crinkled from wear and tear and travel; a small rip in the corner taped over, the half circle of a mug soaking into its surface.

Lupine eyes stared at the paper with terror and trepidation- unblinking as they scanned over the folds. Hesitantly, his other hand reached up, picking at one of the corners.

He pulled the corners away, unfolding the paper from itself-

Emblazoned on its surface was the shining marble and brick of Beacon Academy; a fountain filled with warm blue water the centerpiece of the picture.

And standing in front of the fountain was Team DRGN; Nash, leaping in the air with a beaming grin, Phalanx stalwart behind him; Gail, halfway hidden behind the mech, her head bowed with a small, bashful smile; Rainier, his hands folded behind his head, looking down with a cocked smirk, the last words of a snide remark still on his lips; and glaring back up at him, arms crossed tightly over her chest, mouth wide in a bitter rebuke, was Daria.

He stared down at the image for a long few moments, his breaths coming uneven and shuddering. He swallowed a heavy wave of sadness and shame, fingers tightening around the edge of the photograph.

Rainier's gaze lifted from the picture back to the stars above, sniffing in once. His sadness slowly gave way; filling with determination, eyebrows knitting together, eyes going hard.

He nodded once to himself, before folding the photo back up, reaching inside of his jacket and placing it into the pocket within.

The wolf rose to his feet, turning on his heel back towards the window he'd come from; gracefully climbing back in, shutting it behind him.

And the last light of the villa turned off, giving way to silent night.

* * *

"Sir! _Sir_!"

Burning golden eyes turned at the voice, face twisting into an irritated snarl- watching as a man rushed into the alleyway, eyes filled with urgency. He had barely made it to Vegas when the killer lashed out with a clawed hand, gripping the smaller man's throat tightly, pushing him hard into the brick wall- dust and debris falling from the impact.

Vegas leaned down towards him, his voice low and husky. "...Who else would you like to tell that I'm here, hm? Go on. _Keep yelling_. See how long it takes them to make it."

"I- _I'm sorry_." The man wheezed, staring up at the killer with wide-eyed terror.

The golden criminal held the man's throat tightly for another moment- then released, letting air rush back into his lungs. Vegas stepped away, looking around the dark alleyway with an irritated glare. "Why did you call me here?" He asked, turning back to his informant. "I hope for _your sake_ that you've got a new lead for me, and a _very good one_ at that."

"I-" The smaller man hesitated, gaze not rising to meet the killer's own. "I... no, sir, I... have nothing on the Maiden," Vegas growled, taking a hard, threatening step towards him. "But- _but_! I do have something else! Something that- that I think might interest you!"

The killer froze in his tracks- Dragon's Fang poking out of his heavy cloak, its tip a few short inches away from the informant's stomach. "...Oh? You _think_ you have something that might interest me? This should be very... entertaining."

"I- I managed to- to take this, earlier today! They're- they're the talk of some of the guards and soldiers in town, made a huge buzz coming in!" He stuttered, reaching into the bag at his side to pull out a Scroll tablet, fumbling to bring it to life, its screen brightening the alley around them.

He handed it over to Vegas, the killer giving him a confused side-eye as he took the Scroll. The man nodded profusely, continuing. "They just got in last night! New arrivals; huntsmen, we think."

Vegas looked down to the screen- and his eyes widened, his face dropping in shock.

"Supposedly, they came in from Beacon Academy."

The killer's eyes never left the tablet screen- emblazoned with the blurry images of five people walking along the street, heading towards the pyramid of Shade. His golden gaze locked onto the man bringing up the rear; a samurai, dressed in blacks and purples, a katana sheathe hanging at his side.

Slowly, Vegas' face began to split; a twisted, vicious smile claiming his expression, stretching from ear to ear. He took a deep breath in- and chuckles began to bubble out of his lips, body shaking. He straightened up, those chuckles turning into joyous cackles, stumbling back to lean against the wall for support. He buried his face into a hand, shaking it side to side in disbelief.

"...Um... sir?" The informant asked, voice cracking, eyes wide. "Are you... is everything okay?"

"Ha_ha_! Oh, absolutely, _everything's_ perfect," His laughter abated, his body slowly stilling. Once his cackles came to a stop, he straightened back to his feet, handing the tablet back to the man. "..._Thank you_ for your ever dutiful service," He whispered, voice light with elation. "This... this is very, _very _good. I knew that I had a very, _very _good feeling about waiting,"

His grin tilted maniacally, golden eyes glowing eagerly in the dark. "_Patience really _is _a virtue_."

* * *

**-Volume 1-**


End file.
